FAMILIAR LEGTlfEES '' . 



ON THE 



PEITATEUCH; 



DELIVERED BEFOEE THE MORXIXG CLASS OF BETH- 
AXY COLLEGE, DUEINO THE SESSION OF 1859-60. 

BY 

ALEXANDER CAMPBELL 

ALSO 

Sl)ort ®3etracts from l)is germons buring tl)e same 0essi0tt 

Reported by CHAS, Y. SEGtAR, Phonogeapher, 
to which is prefixed a 

BRIEF SKETCH OF PRESIDENT CAMPBELL'S LIFE. 

TSE WHOLE 
EDITED, WITH AN INTRODUCTION AND OCCASIONAL NOTES, 

ByW.T.MOOEE. 



CI^^CHSTINTATI: 

H. S. BOSWOETLI, PUBLISHEE. 

1867. 






9,1^-^^ 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1867. by 

AY. T. MOORE, 

In the District Court of the United States for the Southern District 

of Ohio. 



PRINTED BY THE 

MIAMI PRINTING AND PUBLISHING CO. 

CINCINNATI, OHIO. 



,^ b-e^wj^ :]^,f^, 



/ 




TO 
THE STUDENTS OF BETHANY COLLEGE, 

TTKO HAVE LISTENED TO THE 

^^OLD MAN ELOQUENT/' 

AND WHO WITX KEADILY EECOGXIZE IX THESE LECTURES MUCH 

THAT IS FAMILIAR, IS THIS ATTEMPT TO REVIVE 

SVrEET MEMORIES OF THE PAST 

RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED 

BY 

ONE OF THEIR NUMBER. 



PREFACE. 



On account of various causes, over which the Editor had no con- 
trol, the publication of this volume has been greatly delayed. Ac- 
cording to the original design, it should have appeared in the spring 
of 1862; but as it was impossible to carry out that design, the man- 
uscript was laid aside until the present year. The work is now 
given to the public with an earnest hope that it may do good, and 
that it will be considered not altogether unworthy the great mind 
whose thoughts it rescues from oblivion. In justice to Mr. Camp- 
bell, it is proper to state that the report of his Lectures and Ser- 
mons appears without his corrections. This was not intended to be 
so, but could not be otherwise under the circumstances. It was 
very desirable to have the report pass through his hands, but on ac- 
count of his many pressing duties and failing health subsequent to 
the year 1861, it was deemed improper to burden him with such a 
laborious task. It is hoped, however, that this defect is, in some 
respect, compensated for by preserving Mr. Campbell's original style 
— the identical language, so far as reported, of his extemporaneous 
Lectures and Sermons. Some revision was found to be absolutely 
necessary, and in this labor the Editor desires to acknowledge the 
valuable assistance of his friend J. Sprigg Chambers, Esq., who 
has shown peculiar fitness for a work of this kind. 

The sketch of Mr. Campbell's life was furnished expressly for 
this volume by Mr. Segar, who took the liveliest interest in the 
publication of these Lectures, but whose recent death cut him off 
from all participation in their final preparation for the press. 

Mr. Segar' s work has been carefully revised, and is now believed 

(V) 



VI PREFACE. 

to be not only a faithful account of the principal events of Mr. 
Campbell's life, but a valuable contribution to Biographical Lite- 
rature. 

It will be seen that only a portion of Mr. Segar's phonographic 
report is contained in this volume. The Lectures on the New Tes- 
tament and incidental subjects, delivered during the session, are re- 
served for another volume, should there be such a demand for it as 
will justify its publication. 

Trusting that this effort to preserve the thoughts of one of the 
greatest and best men of modern times may meet with a generous 
approval, the volume is committed to the public, not without hope 
that it will meet the public expectation. 

Cincinnati, April j 1867. 



CONTENTS 



Biographical Sketch^ 9 

Introductiox, ----.-••- 51 

Lecture ox the Pentateuch, - - - - - - -61 

lucture i, --------- 61 

Lecture II, -------.. 67 

Lecture III, --------- 74 

Lecture IY, ---------83 

Lecture V, --------- 89 

Lecture VI, - - - -- -. - - -96 

Lecture VII, 102 

Lecture YIII, 109 

Lecture IX, - -^•----- 115 

Lecture X, 122 

Lecture XI - - - 130 

Lecture XII, --••--^-- 136 
Lecture XIII, -------- 143 

Lecture XIV, 148 

Lecture XV, --..-*.-. 155 

Lecture XVI, --------- 161 

Lecture XVII, ---••-.- i66 

Lecture XVIII, 171 

Lecture XIX, i78 

Lecture XX, 183 

Lecture XXI, 188 



viii CONTENTS. 

Lecture XXII, 194 

Lecture XXIII, 200 

Lecture XXIV, 204 

Lecture XXV, 209 

Lecture XXVI, - 215 

Lecture XXVII, - - 217 

Lecture XXVIII, 223 

Lecture XXIX, 228 

Lecture XXX, -.-•..---. 231 

Lecture XXXI, 236 

Lecture XXXII, 246 

Lecture XXXIII, 249 

Lecture XXXIV, - - 260 

Sermon on the Law, -------- 260 

Extracts from Sermons, -------- 305 



ALEXANDER CAMPBELL 

HIS 

LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER.* 



The lives of distinguished men are the property of the 
public ; not only of the generation they serve, but of all 
succeeding generations. Were there no future life, such 
persons would enjoy a species of enviable immortality in 
the present world, provided their career secured the com- 
mendation of men. The intelligence of a people is in the 
proportion of the calmness, frankness, and discrimination 
with which they form their estimate of their public servants. 
It is a duty to essay the task, and essay it with the determi- 
nation to profit by their excellencies, and be warned by 
their defects. If we condemn one invention, and exalt an- 
other into a great instrument of human progress and com- 
fort, w^e should a fortiori^ as a man is superior to a ma- 
chine — as an immortal spirit has a higher value than mere 

'-This work is compiled principally from four different articles concerning 
Mr. Campbell : one written by Prof. Pendleton, in the Millenial Harbinger ; 
another in the Wheeling Intelligencer, by the editor ; one in the Christian 
Standard, by its editor, and A Memorial Address, by Elder Burnet, of Bal- 
timore. Each of the articles referred to, contained more or less interesting 
matter omitted by the others. All the events and facts scattered through- 
out the several communications have been carefully interwoven each with 
the other, and generally arranged here in the order of their occurrence. 
Some original matter has been embodied, and, all in all, it is believed to be 
the most accurate and comprehensive article yet published on the life and 
character of Alexander Campbell. 



10 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

matter — and spiritual qualities are better than material — 
estimate human usefulness above all meaner things, and 
carefully select from a great character the true points of 
admiration and imitation. 

Alexander Campbell, the subject of this biograph- 
ical sketch, by common consent, has filled a larger place 
in the public mind of this generation than any other theo- 
logian on either continent, and the views attributed to him 
have been received by a larger number of religionists, 
within the last forty years, than those of any other man 
within the past hundred. .No other man of this generation 
could count upon a half million of adherents during the 
time of his natural life. Such success in the conflict of 
opinions, where the opposing parties were the peers of the 
most learned and the more pious, must argue great powers 
and great plausibility, and also must present ground for 
presumption of solid merit. 

Alexander was the son of the Rev. Thomas Campbell, a 
relative and classmate of the Scotch poet, Thomas Camp- 
bell. His mother, Mrs. Jane Campbell, Avas of a French 
Huguenot family, which fled to Ireland to escape massa- 
cre from the Catholics after the bloody St. Bartholomew's 
day. She was an amiable Christian woman, and possessed 
and exercised those rare and cherished traits of character 
which gained the respect of those who met her, and se- 
cured the high esteem of all who knew her well. 

Thomas Campbell, the father, was a very remarkable 
man. One of the most devout men said, he never knew 
one so devout as Thomas Campbell. He was educated at 
the Glasgow University, and was one of the most accurate 
English and classical scholars, and an exact and thorough 
disciplinarian and teacher. He was several years a Pres- 
byterian minister of the New Market Presbytery in the 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 11 

North of Ireland, and on account of his amiable qualities, 
was chosen bv that body a commissioner to reconcile the 
Burgher and Anti-Burgher Synods. When an Irish noble- 
man offered him a lucrative position he declined it, for fear 
it would corrupt his children with the vices of society. 
His house was a house of religious instruction and prayer, 
and his parish is said to have been the most exemplary in 
the country. While he adhered to the catechism, he was 
rigid in his examination of parents and children. Feeble 
health drove him to this country, and in 1807 he settled as 
a minister of the gospel under the direction of " the Pres- 
bj^tery of Chartiers,'^ then attached to " the Associate 
Synod of North America.'^ 

Thomas Campbell had not been in this country long 
when, with enlarged views and a warm heart, he conceived 
a system of Christian Union upon the basis of the Bible 
and the Bible alane. His plan was distasteful to his pres- 
bytery, and ended in a separation in 1808. Three very 
remarkable papers emanated from his pen about this time, 
two of them in A. D. 1808. These were a Declaration 
AND Address, and a Prospectus of a Religious Reforma- 
tion. The burden of these papers was, the inefficiency of 
denominational organizations for the enlightenment and 
salvation of the world, and the necessity of a radical 
change of base for future assaults upon the kingdom of 
darkness. 

Discarding all creeds and confessions of faith, he formed 
a society in Washington county, Pa., to give expression 
and force to these sentiments, and not a great while there- 
after two churches were organized upon these principles. 
His followers and friends agreed with him in the purpose 
of " absolute and entire rejection of human authority in 
matters of religion/' and the resolution to stand together 



12 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

upon the proposition, that ^'the Holy Scriptures are all- 
sufficient, and alone sufficient, as the subject matter of faith 
and rule of conduct, and that, therefore, they would re- 
quire nothing, as matter of faith or rule of conduct, for 
which they could not give a " Thus saith the Lord,'' either 
in express terms or by approved precedent. This Avas the 
initial movement which had much to do in shaping the cur- 
rent of events, issuing in what has been called the Re- 
formation of the Nineteenth Century. These reformatory 
movements in the Presbyterian Church were headed by 
Thomas Campbell, in Western Pennsylvania and Western 
Virginia, and in the same church in Kentucky and Ten- 
nessee, under the lead of Stone, Marshall, Thompson, Dun- 
levy and others. By these independent popular move- 
ments, without any definite or systematized idea of primi- 
tive Christianity, a latent force was excited which has 
taken the body and form of what is now known as the 
Christian Church, sometimes called the '' Disciples." 

Alexander Campbell was born near Shane Castle, in the 
county Antrim, Northern Ireland, parish of Broughshane, 
in June, 1786, and was consequently nearly eighty years 
old at the time of his death,* which occurred in Bethany, 
Brooke county, West Virginia, at his residence, with fam- 
ily and friends around him, on the 4th of March, 1866. 
His ancestors on both sides migrated to Ireland from Scot- 
land, but on his mother's side they were originally of the 
French Huguenots. 

His preparatory education was conducted with great 

*There has been some discrepancy in the statements concerning his age, 
growing out of the fact that the family register was lost by shipwreck^ on 
the voyage to America, but the above date is derived from a written mem- 
orandum furnished his son-in-law by Thomas Campbell, in 1847, and which 
is therefore regarded by the family as most reliable. 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 13 

care, under the instruction of liis father. Indeed, his lit- 
erary and religious improvement was the labor of his 
father's life. As Hamilcar swore the boy Hannibal to a 
life-long enmity to Rome, and made his god Baal a part of 
his son's name, so Thomas Campbell trained young Alex- 
ander to a perpetual war against the Papal and all other 
corruptions and sins. Blessed with an exceedingly intellec- 
tual and pious parentage, and reared in one of the strict- 
est schools of Presbyterianism, he early formed and culti- 
vated habits of piety, and a taste for theological studies, 
which gave shape to his entire life. A profound rever- 
ence for the Word of God was a marked feature of the 
character alike of the boy and of the man. The father 
and son were wont to recite the preparatory discipline, in 
which was formed that habit of laborious and thorough in- 
vestigation for which Alexander was, in after years, so 
eminently distinguished, and it is no idle assertion to say 
that few if any scholars of the age in which he lived ever 
enjoyed finer opportunities, or improved them better than 
he did. From his earliest years his remarkable powers 
were judiciously taxed to the utmost limit of wholesome 
and vigorous exertion. Not only were all the resources 
of classical learning plied with an exhaustive industry and 
care, but the rich fountains of English and French litera- 
ture were drawn upon to a degree but seldom required in 
the education of modern scholars. The finest passages in 
Greek, Roman, French and English literature, both in 
poetry and prose, were committed to memory, and in his 
late years it was a favorite recreation of his often over- 
taxed powers, to recite such of these as the incident of 
the occasion mio-ht suo^o-est, to the delio'ht and admiration 
of his companions. Even on his deathbed, rich passages 
that he had committed to memory when a boy, would often 



14 LTFl^ 0^ ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

come to him by some liidden association of ideas, to illus- 
trate with their golden beauty the subject of his discourse. 

Such was the academical discipline of this remarkable 
man. Meantime his relii2:ious and moral trainino; was, if 
with any difference, even still more thorough and severe. 
Speaking of his father, he himself says : "" His family 
training and discipline were peculiarly didactic, biblical 
and strict. The Bible, with Brown's Catechism, was, dur- 
ing the minority of his family, a daily study and a daily 
recitation." Fcav, if any men, in the course of a man's 
life, will be known or seen who could recite so much of the 
scripture, or who seemed to have so full and off-hand a 
grasp of the whole text and context of the inspired writ- 
ings. Like Timothy, he had known them from his youth. 

From such preparation as this, he passed to the Fniver- 
sity of Glasgow, the Alma Mater of his father, who left 
the son in that institution when he departed to America. 
In the University he enjoyed the finest opportunities to 
perfect his previous studies, and to enlarge still mofe his 
knowledge of literature and science. " Professors Young 
and Jordan were his special friends and favorites in the 
University." The " Andersonian Institute " had just been 
founded, and he heard the first course of lectures in Nat- 
ural Science, delivered by Prof. D. Ure. During his col- 
lege life he formed a ^' very happy acquaintance also with 
Dr. Greville Ewing and Dr, Wardlaw, then very promi- 
nent actors among the Scotch Independents, as well as 
with Dr. Moutre, Dr. Mitchell, and others of the Presby- 
terian faith. These advantages were all improved to the 
utmost by his eager and industrious mind. Inheriting a 
vigorous and well-balanced physical and mental constitu- 
tion, and trained from his earliest years, by his learned 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 15 

and accomplished father, to habits of severe application, 
he grew up to manhood a constant and laborious student. 
He soon rose to a high rank of distinction in the judg- 
ment and esteem of both the faculty and his fellow-stu- 
dents. 

He completed his university education at Glasgow, in 

1808, and the next year Alexander set out, with the mother 
and his younger brother and sisters, to follow the father to 
the United States, but being cast aw^ay on the Island of 
Ha, their voyage across the Atlantic was delayed till 

1809. He landed in New York in October, and thence 
came to Yfashington, Pa. 

Reference has already been made to the separation 
which took place in 1808, and which gave rise to the 
'' Declaration and Addre^ss of the Christian Association of 
Washington, Pa.,^' written by Thomas Campbell, and in 
which the nature and design of the reformatory movement 
were set forth and presented to the public. When Alex- 
ander arrived in Western Pennsylvania he found his father 
reading the proof-sheets of his Declaration and Address, 
as it was then passing through the press in Washing- 
ton. 

At the request of the father, while reading the proof- 
sheets, the attention of the son was first critically concentra- 
ted upon this remarkable paper. Alexander then predicted 
that the leaven of those papers would work greater change 
than the author dreamed of, affirming, ''in the Bible alone 
you will never find infant baptism and some other things 
practiced by us. The restoration of primitive Christianity 
will work a mighty revolution.'^ But the elder Campbell 
had counted the cost and launched his bark, trusting the 
voyage to the guiding star of truth. The son entered 



16 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

heartily into liis father's plans, not then dreaming that his 
more active nature and irrepressible force would, in a few 
years, place him in the lead ; and never did one great 
mind fall into the shadow of a greater, with equal grace 
and truer delight. There was no falling back of the elder, 
but Providence gradually bore the younger, with firmer 
tread and more agility, far in the advance. Which was 
the leading mind, was soon determined by the acclaim of 
thousands. The father rejoiced more in the son than in 
himself, for had he not labored for this very end? 

The avowed object of this movement, as set forth in this 
Declaration and Address, was " the restoration of pure, 
primitive, apostolic Christianity, in letter and spirit, in 
principle and practice.'' '' With this exhibition," adds the 
venerated father, Thomas Campbell, '' son Alexander was 
so captivated that, althoiigh the proposed reformation was 
universally opposed by all professing parties, and he and 
his family were as yet unprovided with an adequate por- 
tion of worldly property, yet he was so much attached to 
the good cause that he promptly declined the propitious 
offer of a thousand dollars a year, most kindly and urgently 
made by Lawyer Mountain, of Pittsburg, Pa., for under- 
taking the tuition of the academy of that place, of Avhich 
Mr. Mountain was a principal trustee. His reason as- 
signed for rejecting this kind and flattering offer was, that 
he could not possibly accomplish both, and that he felt 
conscientiously bound to do everything in his power, 
through the Divine assistance, to promote the proposed 
reformation, described in the aforesaid address." 

This is one among many illustrations that might be given 
of the remarkable resolution and promptness with which 
Alexander Campbell ever took his stand on the side of 
what he deemed to be right, and his duty to defend. As 



LIFE or i\LEXANDER CAMPBELL. 17 

yet, lie was simply a private disciple of Christ. His avo- 
cation in life had not been definitely chosen. He was 
fresh from the college of Glasgow, and Avith a thorough 
edacation, splendid natural endowments, and in the midst 
of a people where such qualifications could command their 
own terms of honor and emolumentj there were certainly 
many attractions drawing him to a life of ambition and 
worldly fame; but he 'chose the truer and better part, and 
determined at once to throw all his powers into the com- 
paratively despised work on w^hich his father had, against 
so much discouragement, entered, and to submit the con- 
sequences to God. How wisely he chose in this noble 
self-consecration, let his subsequent career teW, 

At the advice and under the direction of his father, he 
at once devoted himself to the preparatory studies for the 
ministry. Soon after arriving in Washington, Alexander 
abandoned all other cares ; applied his powerful and disci- 
plined mind ancAV to the methodical study of the Sacred 
Scriptures. Meantime his father had gathered together 
two small congregations to whom he ministered, and who 
were agreed wdth him in the purpose of the proposed re- 
formation. One of these was at Cross-Roads, some six 
miles northwest, and the other at Brush Run, some eight 
miles southwest of Washington, Pa. Before the latter of 
these, in May, 1810, Alexander Campbell preached his 
first sermon in America, on the text : " Therefore every 
one that hcareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, 
I will liken him to a wise man that built his house upon 
the rock. And the rains descended, and the floods came, 
and the wind blew and beat upon that house, and it 
fell not, for it was founded on the rock. And every one 
that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, 
shall be likened to a foolish man, who built his house upon 



18 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

the sand, and the rains descended, and the floods came, 
and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell, 
and great was the fall of it.'^ 

The text was evidently chosen as suggestive of the pro- 
posed foundation of this new organization, and afforded a 
fruitful theme for the consideration of all human bases of 
ecclesiastical union and fellowship. It w^as received with 
the greatest enthusiasm by the entire congregation to 
whom it was addressed, and resulted in an immediate and 
unanimous call to the ministry. At this time his father 
and James Foster were the only oflBcial teachers recognized 
in the movement, and the two above named congregations 
the only organizations formed upon the principles set forth 
in the Declaration and Address. Alexander Campbell now 
added the weight of his rare powers, and the excitement 
everywhere to hear him became intense. In the absence of 
church edifices, meetings were held in the open air, and 
the groves in the valleys and upon the hilltops rang with 
the powerful voice of this bold and impetuous pleader for 
the authority of the Word of God, above and against tra- 
dition, creeds, confessions of faith, and every human sub- 
stitute invented to put ecclesiastic bonds upon religious 
freedom and Christian fellow^ship. Meantime these first 
movers in reform were themselves reforming. They had 
in the beginning only adopted the principle of reforma- 
tion, that is : in all things strict conformity to the Word of 
of God. They very soon came to the agreement to '^ break 
bread " every first day of the week, and it Avas not long 
before they felt themselves challenged to review the whole 
question of baptism. 

"The incongruity of weekly communion and infant 
church membership soon became evident" to the quick 
and original mind of Alexander Campbell. Indeed, when 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 19 

he first read the third proposition of that address, he saw 
that the principle therein announced, must lead to the 
abandonment of infant baptism. It is in these words : 
" That (in order to church union and communion) nothing 
ought to be inculcated upon Christians as articles of faith, 
nor required of them as terms of communion, but what is 
expressly taught and enjoined upon them in the Word of 
God. Nor ought any thing to be admitted, as of divine 
obligation, in their church constitution and management, 
but what is expressly enjoined by the authority of our 
Lord Jesus Christ and his Apostles upon the New Testa- 
ment Church ; either in express terms, or by approved 
precedent." " On reading this, I asked my father," says 
Alexander, ''in what passage or portion of the inspired 
oracles, he could find a precept or an express precedent 
for the baptism or sprinkling of infants in the name of 
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. His answer, in 
substance, was, ' It is merely inferential, but, to the law 
and to the testimony we make our appeal. If not found 
therein, we of course must abandon it. But,' continued 
he, ' we could not unchurch ourselves now, and go out into 
the world, and then turn back again and enter the church, 
merely for the sake of form or decorum !'" Thus the ob- 
vious difficulty was early seen, but such are the power of 
education, the force of early convictions, and the great 
proneness in the human mind to disparage positive in- 
stitutions, where there is already a consciousness of the 
substance of religion, that these honest, earnest, and un- 
compromising men stumbled long at the step which their 
principles clearly required them to take, and which would 
at once sever them forever from the great family of Pedo- 
baptists. 

So this matter was left under discussion, but it could 



20 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

not be indefinitely postponed. Meanwhile, Alexander 
Campbell had formed the acquaintance of Margaret Brown, 
daughter of John Brown, of Brooke county (in the ex- 
treme Avestern part of Virginia), and soon became the ac- 
cepted applicant for her hand. He was married in March, 
1811, and immediately settled at her paternal home on the 
Avaters of Buffalo creek, the site of the present Bethany, 
and on which he has lived continuously for more than 
half a century. That spot, now the pleasant village of 
Bethany, w^as then a wild and secluded locality amid the 
hills, shut out almost from the world by the abrupt cliffs 
that overhung it, and the short windings of Buffalo creek, 
which, at that day, being unbridged, Avas often not forda- 
ble. It was in this romantic and remote spot in the New 
World to which he had come, amid peaceful agricultural 
pursuits, and in the prosecution of those studies befitting 
his calling, as a minister of the Gospel, that Alexander 
Campbell's long and eventful public career was fully in- 
augurated, without a suspicion, on his part, w^e may add, 
that he was to become one of those great pioneers in the 
world of reform that have appeared at rare intervals in 
the history of mankind, and have had power by ''the sole 
lever of thought" to upheave the weights of ancient tra- 
ditions, long-accepted formulas, and consecrated theories, 
from the mind of society. He began as Martin Luther 
and John Wesley began, not as a would-be revolutionist, 
but as a reformer of his own immediate ''household of 
faith." He looked forward to no new denomination, but 
simply to the correction of vital errors and innovations 
that had been fastened upon the primitive Gospel as 
preached in the pulpits of that day. Martin Luther pro- 
claimed "justification by faith," and the echo and effects 
of that startling proclamation went far beyond his own 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 21 

conception and control. And thus, Alexander Campbell, 
in like manner, startled those with whom he was in com- 
munion by many bold and remarkable declarations. 

Alexander Campbell was unceasing in his labors and 
his studies, and became more and more convinced of the 
want of scripture validity in his baptism, and more and 
more impressed with the duty of being immersed, that he 
might conform in every particular to the divine require- 
ment with respect to the ordinance. His constant habit 
of reading the Greek New Testament made him an inde- 
pendent thinker on its contents, and in 1812, Mr. Camp- 
bell declared to the family that he had never been bap- 
tized. His great respect for his father's judgment and 
example could restrain him no longer, and he at length 
decided to be evangelically immersed. The subject w^as 
fully discussed, and seven persons, including most of the 
Campbell family, were immersed by a Baptist preacher 
by the name of Matthias Luse, into the name of the Father, 
Son and Holy Spirit. He says, speaking of this passage 
in his life, '' I thought it due to my father to inform him 
0^ the fact. Therefore, when I decided to be evangelically 
baptized, on my way to invite Elder Matthias Luse, of the 
Red Stone Baptist Association, to attend on the occasion, 
I informed my father of my purpose, and of the time for 
its accomplishment. Accordingly, on June 2, 1812, my 
father, mother, my sister, Mrs. Bryant, my wife, nryself, 
James and Sarah Henon, in all seven' persons, were bap- 
tized into the Christian faith." 

An event so extraordinary as this, could not fail to ex- 
cite much comment and discussion. It gave also great 
notoriety to the prominent actors in the movement, and 
roused up the most intense opposition. Despite of all 
this, how^ever, they steadily persevered, and day by day, 



22 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

under the powerful and shaping intellect of Alexander 
Campbell, the peculiar points in the organization became 
more and more sharply defined and prominently set forth 
for the public examination. 

Weekly communion had been established; and immer- 
sion followed in the churches heretofore named — com- 
posed of pious persons from all quarters of the theological 
heavens. Both father and son became deeply impressed 
with a conviction of the evils and sinfulness of sectarian- 
ism. Their first movement as reformers, was the repudia- 
tion of human creeds, as tests of fellowship, and a pro- 
posal to unite all the disciples of Jesus in one church, 
with the Bible as the only authoritative stand, and of 
faith and practice. Pursuing the study of the Scriptures, 
as free as possible from party bias, they, and those asso- 
ciated w^ith them, w^ere soon convinced that infant mem- 
bership in the church, and sprinkling, were unauthorized 
of God. In a few years, not more than two or three, some 
five or six congregations vfere organized in Washington 
county, Pennsylvania, and the adjacent part of Virginia, 
and about 1815 they unitedly applied for admission into 
the Red Stone Baptist Association, and were received, with 
the express understanding that they subscribe to no human 
creed or confession of faith, but that they should be held 
responsible alone to the Word of God in all things per- 
taining to faith and practice. To many of the preachers 
this union was at first very distasteful, and they accord- 
ingly commenced a series of petty measures of opposition, 
and an irrepressible conflict arose, and finally resulted in 
the withdrawal of these churches from the Red Stone As- 
sociation, and their union with the Mahoning Association 
of Ohio, known to be more liberal in feeling. 

At the first meeting of the Red Stone Association, 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 23 

which was held after the union, Alexander Campbell de- 
livered his celebriited discourse on the law. The clear, 
strono; and orio-jnal views announced in this address were 
new to most of the preachers, and excited against him the 
most relentless opposition. The disaffection grew with 
time, and it was not long till such men as Brownfield, Fry 
and others, set themselves resolutely to work to excom- 
municate him, and those associated with him, from the fel- 
lowship of the' Association. 

Failing in several attempts upon the ground of heresy in 
doctrine, overcome always in argument upon the scrip- 
tural authority for the proposed measure, and finding that 
the majority was always against them, these envious and 
ambitious leaders, resorted at length to a parliamentary 
artifice for accomplishing their purpose. A rule was 
adopted, as to the reception of congregations into the As- 
sociation, providing that all congregations which had been 
" constUidionaUj/'^ ^dmitied^ shovild he permitted to con- 
tinue their connection. The design of this rule was not 
seen, at the time of its adoption. But it soon leaked out 
that Mr. BrownfiehL who had succeeded in ojettino: him- 
self adopted moderator, intended to apply the rule to the 
exclusion of the " six cono-resiations that had come in with 
the Campbells.'^ The artifice was this : the constitution 
of the Red Stone Association required a recognition of 
the Philadelphia Confession of Faith ; but these congre- 
gations had been admitted under a special protest against 
all confessions of faith, therefore, the moderator would 
rule, they have not been '^constitutionally^' received, and 
must be excluded from any further connection with the 
body. 

Having ascertained that such a course was to be taken, 
Alexander Campbell immediately proposed to the congre- 
gations aimed at, that they should peaceably withdraw. 



24 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

and thus avoid all further strife with the Red Stone Asso- 
ciation. This was agreed to, and before the next annual 
meeting they had all united with the Mahoning Associa- 
tion in Ohio. This union was one of complete harmony, 
and in a few years the Association dropped all preten- 
sions of ecclesiastical power, and continued to assemble 
only as a sort of reunion of sister congregations — annual 
^^big meetings" for co-operation and encouragement in 
the work of spreading abroad the restored principles of 
primitive apostolical Christianity. 

Against his own wishes, he was compelled by the force 
of ecclesiastical opposition, to act separately from the 
Baptists, seeking fellowship only with those who were will- 
ing to be governed by the Bible alone. Thus cut loose 
from his former connections, and with a fierce opposition 
stirred up against him, he gave himself supremely to the 
advocacy and defense of his plea for a return to primitive 
Christianity, For half a century he gave his strength to 
this work, making tributary to it all his treasures of learn- 
ing and eloquence. 

During those trials, the extraordinary powers of Alex- 
ander Campbell became widely known. The people were 
with him, only the rulers of the then Baptist Israel were 
opposed to him. Their opposition, however, was every- 
Avhere active. His advocacy was no less energetic and ag- 
gressive. He made frequent excursions, far and near, as 
Providence opened for him a door, and steadily enlarged 
his influence and increased the number of his disciples. 
His renunciation of infant baptism, and bold advocacy of 
immersion, brought upon him the fiercest opposition of 
the Presbyterians. 

Mr. Campbell announced what he believed to be funda- 
mental propositions in all his eiforts to keep the unity of 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 25 

the spirit in the bonds of peace. He declared to the world 
that, " Christian unity can result from nothing short of the 
destruction of creeds and confessions of faith ^ inasmuch as 
human creeds and confessions have destroyed Christian 
unityT That '' ivhenever the setting aside of creeds and 
confessions shall he attempted^ ChristiciJis will give to the 
tvorld and to angels^ and to themselves^ proof that they do 
believe the Word of God.^^ 

This was Mr. Campbell's first great distinctive enuncia- 
tion or dogma. On these and others hereinbefore alluded 
to, Mr. Campbell took his stand, and reasoned and labored 
as few have done for the union of all God's children, on 
the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ 
himself being the chief corner stone. He appeared in 
public in defense of his views, and in vindication of his 
entire orthodoxy. He was, as might be expected, ar- 
raigned as the " setter forth of strange doctrine," and the 
would-be founder of a new sect, which accusations he re- 
pelled by saying that " there is nothing new in Christian- 

ity." 

Alexander Campbell soon became chiefly and promi- 
nently known as the recognized head of a new religious 
sect, as it was generally esteemed, called familiarly the 
'^ Campbellite Baptist Denomination," but called by him- 
self and the membership of the church, the " Disciples.'' 
This denomination took its origin from the teaching of 
himself and his father, as already stated, and during the 
half hundred years last past, has grown to a church num- 
bering five hundred thousand members, who are especially 
numerous in the States of Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, 
Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi, and 
many in Pennsylvania and New York. The views as 
taught and expounded by Mr. Campbell and his father 



26 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

have also been adopted by a large mass of people in Eu- 
rope. Their peculiarities, as a religious people, are tha^ 
they discard all human creeds and confessions of faith, 
and take the Bible alone as a perfect all-sufficient rule of 
faith and practice; esteem all commandments and tra- 
ditions of men as necessarily fallible, supererogatory, and in 
derogation of the all-sufficiency as well as the express in- 
junctions of the Word of God. Another peculiarity is 
that they partake of the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper 
every Sunday, or first day of the week. They believe 
also that Christian baptism can only be performed by im- 
mersion, and that there is no warrant either in the exam- 
ple of Christ himself, or in the teachings and practice of 
his apostles, for any other baptism. Infant baptism they 
reject, because the command is to ^' repent and be bap- 
tized," and baptism, therefore, they hold, can only follow 
repentance. 

The arguments and details of these views are to be 
found in a Avork called the '' Christian System " — the fun- 
damental work, so to speak, of the Disciples, as a denom- 
ination. The same views, especially as regards baptism^ 
are also amplified and discussed in another work, known 
as the " Christian Baptist,'' first published in serial form, 
and since revised and collected as a sort of text book by 
the denomination. 

The speeches and writings of Alexander Campbell, upon 
his ideas of the theory and practice of primitive Christian- 
ity led to many controversies in the religious world. The 
contest, with Mr. Campbell, was life-long, and gave rise to 
many extraordinary discussions. His debates, as reported 
and published in the regular order of their occurrence, 
were as follows : With the Rev. John Walker, a minister 
of the Secession Presbyterian Church, in the State of 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 27 

Ohio, held at Mt. Pleasant, in the year 1820. This dis- 
cussion was upon the action and subject of baptism. The 
debate created a great local interest, and was attended by 
a vast concourse of people. Next followed his debate 
with the Rev. Wm. McOalla, on " Christian Baptism," 
held in Washington, Kentucky, in the year 1822 ; next 
his debate with Robert Owen, the celebrated sceptic and 
socialist, on the ''Evidences of Christianity," at Cincin- 
nati, in the year 1829 ; next his debate, in the same city^ 
in the year 1836, with Bishop (now Archbishop) Purcellj 
on '' Roman Catholicism;" and one on the points in dis- 
pute between Presbyterians and Reformers, with Rev. N. 
L. Rice, a well-known Presbyterian clergyman, held in the 
city of Lexington, Kentucky, in the year 1843. The spe- 
cific points of this debate were, '* The Action, Subject,. 
Design and Administration of Christian Baptism," also 
'' The Character of Spiritual Influence in Conversion and 
Sanctification," and '^ The Expediency and Tendency of 
Ecclesiastical Creeds, as Terms of Union and Communion." 
This debate with Dr. Rice, embraced a period of eighteen 
days, and was conducted before a large and interested as- 
sembly, Henry Clay presiding as moderator, assisted by 
some of the first men of Kentucky. A like interest had 
been shown in the Owen and Purcell debates at Cincinnati, 
which were thronored by eminent theoloo-ians from all 
parts of the country. Mr. Campbell also held a w^utten 
discussion with Dr. Skinner, on Universalism. In all 
these he maintained a high reputation for learning, digni- 
ty, and logical and critical acumen. It may be truly said 
that these discussions have exhausted the subjects debated. 
Nothing is left to be said. The resources of learning and 
logic have been dra^Yn upon till nothing remains that 
seems worthy of reproduction. These celebrated polemics 



28 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

of Mr. Campbell called out in "full orbed splendor" the 
treasures of his great learning, and his marvelous powers 
of debate. Wherever he went, whenever he spoke, he 
made himself famous by the novelty of his teachings, and 
the remarkable ability with which he discoursed on the 
stirring themes of both Testaments. His calm dignity, 
the profundity of his conceptions, and his extraordinary 
power of generalization riveted every mind and charmed, 
as well as instructed, thousands of those who believed as 
he did, as well as those who did not accept his views of 
the Bible as orthodox. If Alexander had done nothing 
else than the single work of defending, as a verbal contro- 
versialist, his views of scriptural authority of immersion, 
and exposing the human origin of infant baptism, his name 
Avould deserve to stand among the brightest on the roll of 
public speakers and reformers. It was during the debate 
at Lexington, that Henry Clay, the great man eloquent, 
formed so high an estimate of Alexander Campbell, as a 
scholar and gentleman, that he declared him the profound- 
est theologian, and most eloquent and able debater of the 
age. This was no mean compliment, though no less mer- 
ited than generously awarded. 

In 1819, Alexander Campbell established the Buffalo 
Academy, at his residence, and for a few years, aided by 
his father, found it convenient to devote much of his time 
to educating young men in English and classical litera- 
ture. His father, after spending some time in Ohio, Ken- 
tucky, and Indiana came to reside with his son, after he 
opened the academy, an(l there departed his useful life at 
the age of ninety-one. This school was crowded to over- 
flowing from the beginning, and through Mr. Campbell's 
example and influence, a lively impulse was given to the 
cause of education in the then new and comparatively un- 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 29 

lettered community by which he was surrounded. He 
impressed his powerful nature upon many of his scholars, 
and graduated a number of young men, who, in after 
years took high rank in the professional walks of life. 

During the existence of the academy, Mr. Campbell be- 
came acquainted with Walter Scott, one of the brothers, 
who was also a teacher in Pittsburg — an acquaintance, 
which, ripening into intimacy, lasted until the demise of 
the latter in 1861. They were true yoke-fellows, each in 
his sphere contributing greatly to the scriptural knowl- 
edge and spiritual development of the other. 

Mr. Campbell's public efforts, as a speaker and teacher, 
au£:mented his celebrity, and increased the desire to hear 
the objects of his mission discussed. These events deter- 
mined him to write, as well as preach, and in 1823, he be- 
gan his career as a journalist and publisher, at which pe- 
riod he established, at his home in Bethany, the Christian 
Baptist^ a monthly periodical devoted to the defense of 
primitive apostolic Christianity. No religious publication, 
in our country, perhaps, ever created so wide-spread a 
sensation, and excited more controversy than this very 
bold and original work. This periodical soon became to 
the religious world what the '^ Spectator ^^ had been to the 
social world in the days of Addison. Questions were here 
freely propounded and discussed between friends and op- 
ponents, believers and unbelievers ; correspondents were 
answered, accusations refuted, and doctrines and dogmas 
commented upon with all the freshness, and vigor which 
Mr. Campbell's active and original mind infused into 
every thing that claimed his attention. The author was 
in the full freshness and strength of his powers. He had 
a large and intimate acquaintance with the diversified 
phases of sectarian Christianity, was a keen and judicious 



30 LIEE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

observer of men and things, entirely free from all shackles 
of ecclesiastical authority and prejudice, and withal inti- 
mately acquainted with the divine standard with which his 
principles led him to compare all things in professing 
Christianity. He saw many things which he judged to be 
not only without warrant in the word of God, but which 
he regarded as positive corruptions or perversions of 
both its letter and spirit. Naturally with but little rever- 
ence for human authority, he did not feel it sacrilege to 
challenge any thing which he deemed contrary to the di- 
vine standard. Against such things he did not scruple to 
turn every shaft in his w^ell-furnished quiver — argument, 
humor, wit, satire, ridicule — every power of his diversi- 
fied and bold genius was employed with an adroitness and 
energy, that carried every thing before him. He opened 
his pages to the freest and widest discussion and inquiry, 
and allowed a free hearing to both sides of every question 
which he deemed w^orthy of examination. Opponents 
crowded into the arena of his publication, like the Philis- 
tians upon Samson, and with a similar result. 

For seven years, he continued the publication of the 
Christian Baptist, and to the end main.tained in his style 
and matter, a vigor and variety, that seemed inexhausti- 
ble. In 1830, the Baptist appeared in enlarged form, un- 
der the title of The Millenial Harbinger — a work which 
he continued to edit and publish till the end of 1863. It 
is still in existence, and has entered its thirty - eighth 
year, under the editorial charge of his son-in-law. Pro- 
fessor W. K. Pendleton, and Professor C. L. Loos — both 
thoroughly educated gentlemen, each possessing and ex- 
ercising, in an eminent degree, the rare ability to write, 
speak and teach in the most successful and acceptable 
manner. 



LIFE OF x\LEXANDER CAMPBELL. 31 

These publications, although enriched with contributions 
from many gifted pens, were principally occupied with 
editorial essays, and on this mainly depended the public 
interest in them, and the originality of their view^s. Du- 
ring forty years Mr. Campbell also published other works, 
among which were six voluminous reports of oral debates ; 
a translation of the New Testament, by G. Campbell, 
Doddridge and McKnight, with prefaces, emendations, and 
critical notes of his ow^n : the Christian System ; Infidel- 
ity refuted by infidels; Baptism — its Antecedents and 
Consequents; a volume of Literary Addresses; a life of 
his father, and other books, making about fifty volumes. 
These and his sermons gave him a great name and power 
among his fellow-men. His debates with McCalla, Walker 
and Owen had more to do in widening his influence, per- 
haps, than any of his other discussions. He also had 
two noted written discussions in the Harhinger^ one with 
Bishop Semple, and another with Rev. Mr. Skinner, a 
Universalist of New York. 

His debate with the celebrated Ov/en, the zealous and 
talented propagandist of infidel sociology — deserves ad- 
ditional notice. Owen published a challenge to the clergy 
of the w^iole country to meet him in debate on his pecu- 
liar belief. He put it forth in Nevv^ Orleans, and no one 
dared or cared to take it up. Finally, it fell under the 
eye of Alexander Campbell, and he at once resolved to 
accept it. Speaking of this challenge he says, '' I have 
long wondered why none of the public teachers of Chris- 
tianity have appeared in defense of the ' last, best hope 
of mortal man.^ '' " I have felt indignant at the aspect of 
things in reference to this libertine and lawdess scheme," 
and '^ relying on the Author, the reasonableness, and the 
excellency of the Christian religion, I will meet him in 



32 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

debate." This, as ^vcll as the discussion with Archbishop 
Purcell, was a labor which Mr. Campbell felt he owed to 
Christendom. They were, in no exclusive sense, con- 
nected with the special work of reformation to which he 
was more particularly devoted. His important defense 
of the truth of Christianity against the infidel attacks of 
Owen, and his even greater vindication of Protestantism 
against Romanism, deserve the gratitude of the Christian 
world. He stood, in both of these conflicts, as the cham- 
pion of evangelical truth, and his overwhelming assaults 
upon these two decided foes of pure Christianity, will 
ever be remembered as forming an era in the victories of 
the true Church of God. 

In the winter of 1829-30, Virginia called a convention 
to amend the state constitution. Alexander Campbell 
had never taken any public part in politics — but the peo- 
ple knew that he was identified with them in interest, and 
that he was a man to whom they could safely commit their 
cause, and they called him to their service with an earnest- 
ness he could not refuse. Thus he became an active mem- 
ber of the convention w^hich sat in Richmond, Va. There 
has never been such a gathering in Virginia as in that 
convention, and it is probable there never will be again. 
Among his associates in that convention were the venera- 
bles ex-President Madison and Chief Justice Marshall, 
and the excentric John Randolph, of Roanoke, all stars 
of the first magnitude. He bore a prominent part in the 
proceedings of the convention, acting on the judiciai-y 
committee with Marshall, and came into conflict with 
Randolph, and other leading minds of Eastern Virginia, 
in his advocacy of the interest of the western portion of 
the state. It was in that convention that Mr. Campbell 
gave a prophetic notice of what would ultimately be the 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 33 

course of Western Virginia, and what he lived to see ac- 
complished. His colleague from his portion of the state 
was Philip Doddridge, and no two men in that body of 
great minds gave more evidence of Virginia's intellectual 
resources in those days. Mr. Campbell established him- 
self in the esteem of all his compeers, except John Ran- 
dolph, but his failing to win his regard probably was not 
owing to the fact that he did not, in more than one en- 
counter, convince Randolph, in the convention, as Tristam 
Burgess did in Congress, that he w^as fully his peer as a 
statesman and satirist in debate. 

In all Mr. Campbell's political experience he never for- 
feited the dignity of his character as a Christian minister. 
Though the convention was not the place for him, his 
preachings in Richmond, during his attendance at the 
convention, were among the happiest of his life, and their 
influence is felt among his hearers to this day. In pri- 
vate and in public — by the fireside, in the social circle — 
in the halls of the capitol, and in the pulpit, he never 
ceased to disseminate the seeds of the great movement to 
which he had dedicated his life. Small men give way 
under such circumstances, and make shipwreck of their 
faith ; it is only the giant intellect and lion heart that can 
bend the spirit of politics to the higher powers of reli- 
gion, and make even the world venerate and praise it. 

President Pendleton, speaking of Mr. Campbell, in the 
Harbinger^ says, " We remember well an incident illustra- 
tive of the effect of his course during the Virginia Con- 
vention. Ex-President Madison was returning from the 
convention, of which he had been a member, and spent 
the night at my father's house, which was just one day's 
journey from Richmond. The next morning Mr. Madison 
rose early, and he and my father were walking on the por- 



34 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

tico in the early sunlight, when the latter asked Mr. Madi- 
son his opinion of Alexander Campbell. After speaking 
in very high terms of his abilities as displayed in the con- 
vention, he said, 'But it is as a theologian that Mr. Camp- 
bell must be known. It was my pleasure to hear him very 
often, as a preacher of the gospel, and I regard him as the 
ablest and most original and powerful expounder of the 
Scriptures I have ever heard.^ We were then just enter- 
ing our teens, but the aspect of this venerable man as he 
walked, with elastic and graceful step, in the morning's 
sunlight, we shall never forget. This opinion of Mr. 
Madison was of course highly gratifying to my father, 
and was often repeated by him to others in after years.'' 

Alexander Campbell performed, with marked ability, 
the services confided to him by his constituents, and upon 
the adjournment of the convention he returned to his 
home with greatlj^ enlarged influence for good, and with 
increased zeal for religious labor, for which he was so pre- 
eminently distinguished. 

By this time, through his untiring labors, his public de- 
bates, and his many and extensive tours, through all the 
states of the Union, Mr. Campbell, aided by many able 
and devoted co-laborers, had attracted to the movement 
of which he was the great and acknowledged head, many 
myriads of zealous and earnest sympathizers. Congrega- 
tions had been organized in almost every state of the 
Union, and in many localities, they constituted the pre- 
vailing denomination. He had long seen and felt the 
growing want for an educated ministry, and earnestly 
meditated upon the best means for meeting the necessity. 
Already taxed to the utmost, by the innumerable public 
demands upon his time and his learning, he for some time, 
shrank from undertaking what seemed the only alterna- 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 35 

live, but tlie necessity was urgent, and he resolved to post- 
pone it no longer. Consequently, in 1840, he commenced 
the great and crowning work of his life — the founding and 
endowment of Bethany College. He did not wait to raise 
the means from others, but with a sublime confidence in 
the merit of the enterprise, which was his strong charac- 
teristic in all that he undertook, he threw some ten ov fif- 
teen thousand dollars of his own capital into the business, 
and at once contracted for the erection of the necessary 
buildings. All the energies of his great mind and heart 
w^ere thrown into the enterprise, and by the fall of 1841, 
the college was organized, with a regular charter, board 
of trustees, faculty, and over one hundred students as- 
sembled from ten or twelve diflFerent states of the Ameri- 
can Union. 

Mr. Campbell made the tour of the Western States more 
than once in its behalf. His appeals brought liberal re- 
sponses from the proverbially generous people of those 
sections, many of whom w^ere so devoted to him that they 
traveled fifty miles to hear him speak. Even Whitfield, 
in the zenith of his popularity, never drew together crowds 
more completely under his influence. No religious re- 
former ever was more completely enshrined in the hearts 
of his followers than was Alexander Campbell, at the time 
of those celebrated tours during the last twenty-five years. 
He had then begun to grow old, and his head was w^hiten- 
ing — his views had spread far and wide among the peo- 
ple — his name was venerated, and thousands of men, wo- 
men and children regarded him vfith all the fondness of 
filial afi*ection. And no wonder — as any one w^ould say, 
who durino; those days, could have seen him standins: like 
Sdul among the people. His v/hole presence was com- 
manding—his enunciation was sonorous and magnetizing, 



86 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

his pronunciation was accurate and scholarly in the first 
degree — the outward evidences of the highest mental and 
moral discipline, combined with original greatness, were 
unmistakable, while his argumentation was as luminous 
and as grand and as all-sweeping in its comprehensive- 
ness as the sunlight itself. Men of all creeds heard him 
enraptured, and the tributes that were paid him by the 
journals of the day, wherever he went, were, perhaps, 
never accorded to a mere theologian in this country. 

From the founding of Bethany College to his death, 
Alexander Campbell was its president. Those who have 
attended that institution do not need to be told of its 
most interesting feature. Mr. Campbell took upon him- 
self, not only the duties of president, but also the daily 
labor of lecturing on the Bible. Indeed, he made the daily 
and thorough study of the Bible the peculiar characteristic 
of Bethany College. As he regarded the Bible, and the 
Bible alone, as the only authority to the church, in all 
matters of faith and practice, and the only infallible source 
of a perfect morality, so he conceived it should form the 
basis of all Christian education, and he made it the lead- 
ing text-book of educational instruction. This great 
thought he ever cherished, as the ruling principle of his 
colleo:e labors. And to raise up men who would sympa- 
thize with him in his sublime aim of magnifying the value 
of the Book of Books, and enforce its claims to authority 
over the hearts and consciences of men — was the great 
motive which prompted him to superadd to his already 
Oppressive labors, the additional responsibility of Bethany 
College. 

The students of the College will readily remem- 
ber its most interesting feature — the morning lec- 
tures of the president. A chapter was read in the 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 37 

Bible by some student, selected in alphabetical order, and 
tlien commented upon by the president. During these 
lectures he in his latter years sat in his chair, and his re- 
marks were of the easiest and most conversational char- 
acter. He spoke with remarkable power and distinctness. 
Sitting in a plain arm-chair, with the Bible sometimes 
open and sometimes closed, upon a little table before him, 
Mr. Campbell's talk to the students would possess a vigor 
and eloquence in articulation seldom equaled by the most 
impassioned efforts of other speakers in the pulpit or on 
the orator's stand. Frequently the greater portion of the 
morning hour would be consumed on the philology of a 
single verse. Misconception of generic terms, Mr. Camp- 
bell always contended, had been the foundation of untold 
errors in Bible science. In all his debates, and in all 
conversations, not less than in these lectures, he, there- 
fore, stated a proposition, stripped of every vestige of 
ambiguity, by compiling a definition of terms. These 
terms he would trace down to their roots in the dead lan- 
guages. It was the privilege of all, and the custom of 
many students, to leave questions on his desk, and these 
were frequently made the subject of a lecture. Thus his 
intercourse, every morning with the whole number of stu- 
dents in attendance at the college was of such a character 
as to greatly endear him to them. At the close of each 
term the senior class were examined as thoroughly with 
reference to the morning lectures as they were upon the 
sciences and languages. This branch of the college course 
furnished a fair field for President Campbell's extensive 
knowledge of the Holy Writings, and his lectures on the 
Pentateuch, the New Testament Biographies, and Acts 
of Apostles, were such as few other men could deliver. 
In 1847, Mr. Campbell made a tour to Europe, partly 



38 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

for liis health, and partly to visit the congregations of his 
church in Great Britain. On reaching London he was the 
honored guest of our Minister at the Court of St. James, 
Mr. Bancroft, and through him and through letters from 
the first men of this country, was the recipient of honors 
and attentions from the great leaders and molders of po- 
litical opinion in England. Only in Scotland, in the city 
of Edinburg, did any thing occur to mar the influence and 
pleasure of his trip. His position on the slavery cjuestion 
had been grossly misrepresented by a clergyman who was 
desirous to engage him in debate, but with whom Mr. 
Campbell refused to hold any intercourse on account of 
his questionable character. The refusal, for the cause as- 
signed, led to a recourse before the civil tribunals, on the 
part of the clergyman, in an action for libel, the final re- 
sult of which was a verdict in Mr. Campbell's favor. The 
labors and events of this tour, added to the burden of the 
college, seemed to have materially affected his mind and 
general health ; but the deadliest portion mingled in his 
cup of baleful care and sorrow, w^as the sad news w^hich 
awaited his touching the shores of his adopted country. 
The son of his old age, the child of his prayers and hopes, 
was no more ! Wyckliffe Campbell had been drowned at 
his father's mill ! It is said by those who were near him, 
that Alexander Campbell never Avas equal to himself after 
this stroke ; but it was long before the admiring world 
perceived any change. 

Mr. Campbell was intensely Protestant, steadily cher- 
ishing, through his life, the cardinal principles of what is 
called evangelical truth. He was also a profound admirer 
of American institutions. His heart ever beat with the 
impulses of freedom. He never was the champion of 
American slavery. He believed, however, that the rela- 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 39. 

tion of master and slave had existed in biblical times, un- 
der the Divine sanction, or, at all events, tolerance, and 
while he did not desire to be regarded as the apologist of 
American slavery, he contended that it should not be a test 
question of communion in the churches. This was his 
position in Scotland, before the people of that country, as 
it had been here at home before the American people. 
His own slaves that came into his possession by marriage, 
he had emancipated many years previous to his visit to 
Europe. His tract to the people of Kentucky, urging 
them to adopt a system of gradual emancipation, was an 
earnest and powerful appeal. Mr. Campbell was always 
on the side of religious and educational reform. In 1841, 
a teacher of a small school in Bethany was requested by 
some of the citizens to receive the colored children into 
her school. Knowing that to be a penal offense in Vir- 
ginia, she demurred ; but the noble-hearted Campbell vol- 
unteered to come between her and the law if any fine was 
imposed, whereupon the teacher yielded to the wishes of 
the friends of the colored children, and they were taught 
six months unmolested. 

It will be evident from what has been recited, that it 
was never a purpose of Alexander Campbell or his father 
to build up a new party or sect in religion. Their pri- 
mary aim was to reform the errors of the existing organi- 
zations, without schism. They thought they would per- 
suade them to reform, and to conform to the scriptures, 
without division ; and, as far as the Mahoning Associa- 
tion, to which they attached themselves, was concerned, 
this was accomplished. This was a recognized Baptist 
Association at the time the six churches, represented 
mainly by Thomas and Alexander Campbell, united with 
it, aMd it was never subjected to any ecclesiastical excom- 



40 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

munication from Baptist fellowship. Alexander Campbell 
was recognized as a Baptist everywhere in his travels for 
many years after his withdrawal from the Red Stone As- 
sociation, and would, of his own accord, never have broken 
fellowship with them, if they had allowed him the freedom 
which he claimed in preaching what he believed to be the 
simple truth of the gospel, and at the same time the right 
of exhorting his brethren to return, in all matters of faith 
and practice, to the express teachings of the Word of God. 
But prejudice, envy and clerical bigotry are hard things 
to persuade, and still harder to contend against. And so 
the strife commenced, and for more than forty years went 
on with a zeal, and in some cases a passion that in calmer 
years both sides must regret. Of one thing his most in- 
timate friends are sure, that during the riper years of his 
life, Alexander Campbell often thought earnestly and 
fondly of a restoration of fellowship between the Disci- 
ples and the Baptists* But he could not see the way. 
His proposition for a friendly discussion of mutual differ- 
ences with Dr. D. R. Campbell, of Kentucky, made in 
1858, was conceived in this hope, but the spirit in which 
it was met, showed that the proposition was made too 
soon. He ever met any fraternal advances on the part 
of a Baptist with the most cordial welcome, and cherished 
with special care every development of returning good feel- 
ing which he discovered in the prominent men of the de- 
nomination. But further than this he did not see reason 
to go. 

The very recent movements, however, in ecclesiastical 
circles are indicative of a strong desire, in certain loca- 
tions for a union between the Baptists and Disciples. 
Among the denominations of the Middle States there are 
strong symptoms of the same desire, and as the wish be- 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 41 

gins to find utterance, it is not improbable tliat the cher- 
ished hope of Alexander Campbell, in this particular re- 
spect, Avill be realized in the consummation at an early day, 
of a union of the two most powerful and prosperous 
branches of the family of immersionists in our country. 

Having dwelt at length upon Mr. Campbell's antece- 
dents as a reformer, in religious matters, it is meet to 
close this sketch with brief notes of his social and private 
characteristics as an extraordinary man, both in his pub- 
lic and private relations. 

Alexander Campbell's reputation was w^ithout a spot. 
His bitterest enemies failed to find a flaw in his character 
for truth, integrity, and goodness. To those who knew 
him well, he was most cheerful, gentle, genial, just, and 
devout ; and as dearly beloved for his goodness as he was 
venerated for his greatness. And it was in social life, in 
the midst of his friends and relatives, especially around 
his own ever-thronged and ever-hospitable fire-side, that 
Mr. Campbell was most truly loved and honored — and 
there the vacuum can never be filled. His manner toward 
the humblest domestic of his household was kind and en- 
gaging. Never were the inborn characteristics of a gen- 
tleman more certainly and happily manifested than in 
him. Children loved the sight of him. "None knew 
him but to love him." His amiable disposition made him 
a native gentleman. 

Mr. Campbell w^as not self-asserting, but deferential 
and devout. He belonged to that class of men who will 
lead under any circumstances, whether they desire it or 
not. It will ever be remembered to his honor, that with 
an almost unbounded personal influence over a religious 
community, numbering hundreds of thousands, he never 
sought the least ecclesiastical control. Although the tel- 
4 



42 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

egram, from Wheeling, announcing his death, spoke of 
him as ^' Bishop Campbell/' it will surprise many to learn 
that he was merely one of the bishops of the congrega- 
tion meeting in Bethany, and that, outside of this, he 
never sought and never exercised the least ecclesiastical 
authority. 

Nature, education, and circumstances made him a lu- 
minous radiating center, but his position also made him 
equally a focal point, where w^ere concentrated the rays 
emitted" by a thousand minds — his correspondents on 
both continents. The suggestions and queries of every 
mail were invrJuabJe No man ever more scorned the 
idea of imposing his name upon a party than he did. 
He felt humbled when any one would put ite to the sylla- 
bles which designated him, or the members of the Chris- 
tian Churchy from among other men. In the newspapers 
which have lately alluded to him, he is generally spoken 
of as the talented founder of the Christian Church. Nei- 
ther he, nor those who have been stigmatized as his fol- 
lowers, have felt flattered by that word '^ founder.'^ He 
founded nothing that he called, or they call, religion. 
He was often at special pains to show^, not only that the 
things Avhich he taught were in the Bible, but that they 
had been severally recognized by leading authors, at dif- 
ferent periods in the history of the church. 

Mr. Campbell's career of public labor and influence was 
a long one. For forty years he labored with an assiduity 
and energy rarely if ever equaled. Through long tours 
of months, he would travel and talk and preach, with a 
strength and endurance of mind and body almost incred- 
ible. His great fame attracted to his public appointments 
vast concourses of hearers, and he was accustomed to ad- 
dress such, almost daily, for several hours at a time — and 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 43 

not unfrequently, two or three times a day, with all the 
power and animation of one fresh from the rest and pre- 
paration of the study. He was, in the broadest and 
grandest sense of the word, a discourser. His ideas 
flowed on in a perpetual stream, majestic in its stately 
volume, and grand for the width and sweeping magnifi- 
cence of its current. With a voice that thrilled with the 
magnetism of great thoughts, and a person imposing and 
majestic, as his mind w^as vigorous and commanding, no 
one could hear and see him, and fail to discover that he 
was in the presence of one on whom nature had set the 
stamp and seal of transcendent greatness. 

In his family and domestic relations he was a faithful 
husband, a kind and considerate father, and a just and 
respected neighbor. In 1828, he w^as married a second 
time, to S. H. Bakewell, who, with four of her children, 
survives him. These four are all that remain of fourteen 
that were born to him from his two marriages. His 
descendants — children, grandchildren, and great-grand- 
children, in all, number only thirty-one. This is a small 
number to survive an octogenarian. But a bright family 
had gone before him across the Jordan, and he did not 
find his mansion untenanted when he too was called to the 
heavenly home. 

Though a manager of vast interests, in his family, reli- 
gion was a daily business. Those who lived by him and 
with him for years, say he was the most persistent man in 
the religious instruction of his family that they ever 
knew\ Reading the scriptures, expounding them, talking 
of the great themes of the Bible, singing God^s praises, 
were as regular as morning and evening. No matter 
what had been the fatigues and labors of the day, he al- 
ways found strength and time enough for this cardinal 



44 Ll¥F. OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

feature in his household economy. He had but little con- 
fidence in a piety that was not nourished and instructed 
hj the daily study of the word of God, and a perpetual 
habit of prayer. So he taught, and thus he practiced. 
How did it fit him to die? 

The colloquial powers of Mr. Campbell were of an un- 
usually high order. In every circle he seemed to be the 
center of radiance, and as constantly the devoted center 
of attraction for old and j^oung, stranger or relative, as 
ever were the most celebrated conversationalists of modern 
times. His information, derived from life-long study and 
from travels in Europe and America, and from his expe- 
rience among every variety of life was inexhaustible, and 
always charming by its exceeding simplicity. In conver- 
sation, if he be compared Avith Webster, Chalmers, Calhoun 
or old Dr. Beecher, he was their superior. It is neces- 
sary to look further for his peers, and find them in Luther, 
Macauley and Coleridge. In private as in public debate, 
he was more the sage than the controversialist, and com- 
pelled a rare respect and deference. The universe w^as 
his library ; his conversation a living study. 

When traveling, wherever he might sojourn for the 
night, and during intervals of public speaking, throngs 
would collect to hear him talk; and between these fire- 
side and public preachings, his tours would be almost an 
endless monologue. Nobody wished to talk in his pres- 
ence. His themes were so much out of the range of ordi- 
nary conversation, that but few people could sustain a part 
in their discussion. A question w^ould sometimes set him 
agoing — but very soon his vast learning, especially in the 
department of biblical lore, Avould lead him into wide fields 
of discourse, all familiar and easy to him, but strange and 
unknown to his hearers, and it was their pleasure to sit 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 45 

in silence and learn. But he was not pedantic. The 
great ideas, which were the woof and substance of his dis- 
course, were too grand and sublime for the trivialities of 
pedantry. No man ever talked with a more manifest ab- 
sorption of his soul in the transcendent volume of the 
truths which he discussed. His were truly ^'thoughts that 
breathe and words that burn.'' No one ever suspected him 
of 'talking for effect/' in the vain sense of that saying. 
His vrhole nature seemed animated with a divine enthu- 
siasm for the knowledge that brings salvation. He could 
not be induced to talk long on any other subject. No mat- 
ter where he was, he was the observed of all observers, and 
he would bend the conversation, sooner or later, by the 
talisman of his superior genius and zeal, toward the love 
and the mercy of God, as manifested in the gospel. Not 
unfrequently has Mr. Campbell been seen in company 
with reputed conversationalists, and friends have been 
curious sometimes to see how he would sustain himself 
in such cases ; but while he was ever courteous to listen, 
his associations of thought were so original, the range of 
his learning so out of the ordinary track of fashionable 
and superficial attainments, and the divine elevation of 
his ideas so lifted up above the common-places and plati- 
tudes of ordinary conversation, that even the vainest talk- 
ers, soon grew silent, and listened, if not with delight, at 
least from necessity. The charm of his discourse was, 
that it breathed the freshness of a heavenly revelation, 
and, lifting the soul up into the region of things ineffable, 
made it, at least for the moment, feel that it was divine. 

Still, iVlexander Campbell was not, in the proper sense, 
a conversationalist at all ; he was a discourser. And as 
a speaker, he had no equal in his peculiar sphere. He 
was not vfhat the world calls an orator, and could not be 



46 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

compared with the great Whitefield. He had not White- 
field's voice, his action, nor his emotions ; nor had White- 
field his mind. Nor had he Wesley's enthusiasm and 
directness. He had feeble exhortatory power, and he was 
seldom tender. The pathos of Kirwin he could not ap- 
proach. But he drew crowds equal to either of these ora- 
tors. He was clear. He was generally understood by 
the masses, always by the cultivated. His entire mastery 
of the Bible captivated every one ; all felt his power there. 
In action and in mind, he was Webster rather than Clay. 
Grrand and sublime was he, but it was the sublimity of his 
theme. He never seemed to make an effort, while he 
charmed by his exegesis — his severe logic or his lofty 
rhetoric. He w^as unlike most all speakers, but always 
gentle, courteous, commanding. His discourses were ex- 
temporaneous, often exceeding two hours in length, but 
were so clear in statement, cogent in argument, rich in 
diction, and forcible in illustration, as to hold his auditors 
in rapt attention to the close. His habits of extempora- 
neous speaking never caused him to degenerate into slov- 
enliness of style, but sometimes led to undue diffusiveness 
and discursiveness. This feature was particularly ob- 
servable in the writings and speeches of Mr. Campbell 
during the closing years of his life. 

He w\as not less laborious and celebrated as a writer 
than as a speaker. And as a writer his power was ac- 
knowledged far and wide. When quite young he had read 
Scott's Commentary through ; he had committed the gems 
of the better English poets to memory ; the Proverbs and 
Psalms he had at his fingers' ends, all of which seemed to 
be at command always. The earlier years of his editorial 
career were distinguished by lively and earnest contro- 
versy. The arguments and criticisms of his opponents, 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 47 

given in full on his pages, and the replies, exhibiting a 
completeness of information on the topics discussed, ripe- 
ness of judgment, strength of argument, keenness of re- 
tort, and withering exposures of sophistry, that render 
them admirable models of polemical theology. Seldom do 
the writings of other distinguished scholars exhibit such 
playfulness of wit and keenness of satire joined with such 
gentlemanly dignity and logical power. At no period in 
writing did he take much time to dress his thoughts. 
When his mind was on draught, he gave what flowed, and 
this was always characteristic of a great and cultivated 
mind. His fine taste seldom left him at fault. He adorned 
every subject on which he wrote. 

In person, God set the stam.p of a man of power upon 
Alexander Campbell. In hight he was five feet eleven 
inches, and when in health and in his prime, muscular 
without fleshiness ; his brain vigorous rather than massive, 
but well-balanced ; his nose aquiline, and his very dark 
blue eye had an eagle's fire. He was well-formed, and in 
every way well-proportioned. Up to within four years of 
his death, he sustained a healthful and spirited tempera- 
ment, combined with remarkable vigor of mind and physi- 
cal energy, but during the last two or three years of his 
life, the manifest power in his face, the kindly humor 
which was wont to twinkle under his eyebrows, as well as 
his genial and animated expression of countenance grad- 
ually diminished. He w^as one of the most generous of 
benefactors. Though modest and unassuming, while dig- 
nified and manly, he impressed himself upon every one as 
a benevolent and discriminating power. 

For a considerable time before his death, Mr. Campbell 
had been gradually failing in strength, and he had, in con- 
sequence, to withdraw, in a good measure, from active la- 



48 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

bor, both in the college and in the church. Three weeks 
before his death he had taken a bad cold, and nearly lost 
his voice, but for a week longer kept about. His last days 
were as the efiulgence of the sun, when it sinks gloriously 
through gorgeous drapery of rifted clouds. He went to 
his rest through fitful gloamings of a sublime intellect, but 
with a faith that never faltered. The scriptures proved 
his unfailing consolation. He quoted them with great 
i3oint, when he seemed to know or notice but little else. 
A few days before his departure, upon some allusion to the 
Creator, he quoted the first verse • of the first chapter of 
Genesis in the Hebrew, and then the first verse of the first 
chapter of John in the Greek. His mind delighted to 
dwell upon the glorious character of Christ. He would 
look around upon the friends about his bedside and ask : 
" What think ye of Christ, his divine nature, his glorious 
mission, his kingly oflSce, the Sovereign Ruler of the heav- 
ens and of the earth, the fountain of universal being !" 

His gentleness and patience amid his sufi*ering were in- 
expressibly affecting to his friends and relatives who wit- 
nessed his dying hours. The commanding and fascinating 
elements of his character were intact in the midst of the 
wreck of matter. And even in his wanderings the grand 
sentences which fell from his lips ; the beautiful soliloquies 
upon " the fleetness of time," and upon " doing good when 
we can," etc., were wonderful to all who heard them. All 
the records of great men, and their closing hours, fur- 
nish few such precious remembrances. Humboldt, look- 
ing upon the setting sun with his dying eyes, said : "Light ! 
more light ! " And Goethe, dying at the same hour of clos- 
ing day, raised his hand and made as though he were writ- 
ing in the air, according to his habit of describing all his 



LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 49 

sensations as tliey came. An evening or so before he died, 
Mr. Campbell was watching the glories of the departing 
sun. Its last rays were streaming through the window 
directly in front 'of his bed, and fell upon it. His eyes 
rested inquiringly upon the quiet glory, and he was told 
it was the setting sun. "Yes," he repeated, " the setting 
sun ! it will soon go down. But unto them that fear his 
name, shall the sun of righteousness arise with healing in 
his wings." His politeness and gratitude, through all his 
illness, were among the most conspicuous expressions of 
his heart. At times his room would be nearly filled with 
visitors, and he would think they had assembled to hear 
him preach, and ask if it was not time to begin the services, 
and when reminded that they were only friends calling to 
see him, he would request some one to thank them for him, 
and then, turning to the nearest, he would quote : 

^' Society, friendship and love, 
Divinely bestowed upon man ; 

0, had I the wings of a dove, 
How soon would I join ye again. 

My sorrows — " 

And his voice would fail him, and with a graceful wave 
of his hand he w^ould close his eyes and relapse into si- 
lence. There were many memorable death-bed sayings of 
this great and noble man of God, but their recital w^ould 
protract this article beyond the proper limit. 

When his voice had almost entirely left him, and he was 
struggling for breath, his wife said to him : "The blessed 
Savior w^ill go with you through the valley of the shadow 
of death." He looked earnestly into her face for a mo- 
ment, and then with a great effort said emphatically: 

'' That He will ; that He will ! " And this was about the 
5 



50 LIFE OF ALEXANDER CAMPBELL. 

last intelligent and pointed expression of his dying confi- 
dence. 

Such were the closing hours of Alexander Campbell ! 
By thousands and tens of thousands esteemed to have been 
the greatest theologian of his day. 



INTRODUCTION. 



One of the chief attractions of Bethany College, during 
the lifetime of its founder, was the Familiar Lectures 
which were delivered annually before the Morning Class. 
Hundreds of young men, now scattered over the United 
States, will bear willing testimony to the interest and 
value of those Lectures. They, more than any thing else, 
made Bethany College a success, and gave to its students 
that peculiar power before the people for which they have 
always been distinguished. 

Mr, Campbell's method of instruction was, in many re- 
spects, original. Although educated in the Old Country, 
he was not bound by the mannerisms of European col- 
leges. He was not cramped by either the cumbersome 
machinery of written discourse, or what is worse, written 
human formularies of faith. He was emphatically a free 
man, and his thoughts were always full of the inspiration 
of freedom. Acknowledging no master but Christ, bow- 
ing to no authority in religion but the Word of God, and 
reverencing only that which had the sanctions of Truth, 
it is not strange that we find him breaking away from the 
tyranny which has so long characterized our educational 



52 INTRODUCTION. 

systems, and establishing a college whose foundation is 
the Bible, and whose comprehensive aim is to furnish an 
education commensurate with the wants of the whole peo- 
ple. His was the first successful effort to make the Bible 
the principal text-book in the college. True, the ques- 
tion of its practicability and importance had been before 
discussed. But to him alone belongs the credit of having 
actually made the experiment, and that experiment a per- 
manent success. While other American institutions were 
loaded down with European curriculums, Bethany College, 
under the direction of the great mind which presided 
over it, threw off the bondage of obsolete ideas, and 
adopted a system of education in harmony with man's en- 
tire nature — Body, Soul and Spirit. And as the Spirit 
is superior to either Body or Soul, this part of man was 
especially provided for. Hence, Mr. Campbell was not 
only a religious Reformer, but he was also a Reformer of 
our educational ideas. And w^e think it would be difiicult 
to determine in which department he has accomplished 
the most good. In fact, these two works are so intimately 
associated that they may be regarded as one and the same 
thing. And we can not help believing that the time is 
not far distant when the importance of Mr. Campbell's 
labors will be fully recognized and appreciated. 

The present is a remarkable age. Never in the history 
of the world has there been so much mental activity as 
now. This is particularly true of our American mind. 
In our society the Anglo-Saxon predominates, but he is 



INTRODUCTION. 53 

surrounded by other elements, which largely intensify that 
energy for which he has always been distinguished. Then 
again, the freedom of our political institutions tends to ex- 
pand and enlarge the area of thought. In such a com- 
pound civilization as ours — made up as it is of represent- 
atives from all nations — where energy is the distinguish- 
ing characteristic of the people, and where the govern- 
ment tolerates the largest political and religious liberty, 
we may reasonably expect an immense amount of conflict. 
Out of this conflict will necessarily come an immense 
amount of error, unless the m.ental activities of the people 
are directed by some unerring counsel. This can be done 
only by making the Word of God the principal text-book 
in all our institutions of learning. 

One of the most prominent characteristics of the pres- 
ent age, is the disposition manifested almost every where 
to re-examine the foundations of the Christian Faith. Infi- 
delity, in the garb of science, is seeking to undermine 
and destroy the religion of Christ. The conflict between 
Truth and Error is rapidly growing more intense. Strauss, 
Colenso and Renan are only the leaders of the hosts of 
Skepticism. Thousands of others, not so well known to 
faime, but just as eff*ective in their mischievous work, are en- 
deavoring to overthrow the Church of God. And, the 
alarming fact is, that no small amount of this infidelity 
finds its origin in our colleges, and is fed and fostered by 
them. 

In order to save the Church and the world, the Bible 



54 INTRODUCTION. 

must be introduced as the text-book of morals and religion, 
in all the schools, colleges and universities of the land. 
Not the Bible as interpreted by science, falsely so called, 
or human creeds, but the Bible as an authoritative revela- 
tion from God ; as the expression of the Divine Will to 
man; and as a sufficient rule of faith and practice. This 
is the crying want of the present age, and until this want 
is supplied, we may expect that infidelity wdll raise its de- 
fiant form in opposition to the Truth of Heaven, and gain 
new trophies in the interests of the Prince of Darkness. 

Having a just appreciation of the times in which he 
lived, and foreseeing the diflficulties in the way of the 
progress of Truth, Mr. Campbell bent all the energies of 
his great mind to the establishment of a correct system 
of education, both in the pulpit and in our institutions of 
learning. And his first step in this direction, was to give 
the Bible supreme authority in both places. This was his 
distinctive work in Bethany College, and this the great ele- 
ment of poiver in his Religious Reformation. And it was in 
the interest of this great work, that he delivered to the stu- 
dents of his college, what were familiarly called his Morn- 
ing Class Lectures. 

These Lectures were not intended to exhibit logical ar- 
rangement, concise reasoning and regular sequence of 
thought. In manner^ they were simply conversations ; in 
matter^ they sought only to impress upon the students of 
the college the inestimable treasures of the Word of 
God. They were never intended for publication ; in fact, 



INTRODUCTION. 55 

they were wholly extemporaneous efforts, frequently called 
forth by a note found upon his desk, after he had taken 
his seat. He seemed never to know the chapter to be 
discussed, until attention was called to it by the joung 
man whose time it w^as to read, 

Burke has said that "the perfection of conversation is 
not to play a regular sonata, but, like the ^olian harp, to 
await the inspiration of the passing breeze." Mr. Camp- 
bell's conversations-'^ with his Morning Class furnish a fine 
illustration of the truth of this remark. Possessed of a 
mind remarkable for its native strength, and having at his 
command the richest stores of learning, he was always 
ready for any intellectual emergency that might arise ; 
and generally, the greater the emergency, the more cer- 
tain he w^as to succeed. When he seemed to be wholly 
unprepared to treat a subject that came up for considera- 
tion, then it was that he became superior to himself, and 
electrified you by the ease with which he disposed of the 
most difiicult problems in science, philosophy and religion. 
He needed no written discourse upon any subject ; for his 
mind seemed to be one vast manuscript in which were 
already prepared the richest thoughts upon oil suhjects. 
Hence his familiar conversations were often as profound 
in thought, as felicitous in expression, and as finished in 

■^ We use the word "conversations," because he spoke in a con- 
versational style. ^Tliile talking, he always remained seated, and 
frequently occupied much of the time in questioning the class. M. 



56 INTRODUCTION. 

style, as were any of his written addresses. But this was 
not intended to be so. lie seemed rather to avoid any 
thing like the regular style of professional lectures. He 
aimeS only to unfold the rich treasures of the Bible, and 
develop in the heart of every hearer a love for the True, 
Beautiful and Good. In view of these facts, we need 
scarcely remind the intelligent reader, that he can not 
judge of these Lectures by the ordinary rules of criticism 
intended specially for prepared addresses. They are 
simply the off-hand utterances of a great mind im- 
pressed with the idea of an important mission to perform. 
As such they should be judged, and judging them thus, they 
are truly wonderful productions. But after all, their 
chief value rests in the fact, that they are the emhodime7ii 
of Mr. CampbelVs idea of Biblical instruction in a college. 
Considering that he was the first man in this country 
to give practical importance to the Bible as a college text- 
book, the manner in which he used the Bible in the business 
of education^ can not fail to be an interesting subject for 
study. His Morning Class Lectures will supply us with 
all necessary information in reference to this matter, and 
consequently these Lectures have a very important histori- 
cal bearing upon Mr. CampbelTs great life-work. And 
just here we deem it proper to give some account of the 
origin of these Lectures in their present form. 

More than ten years ago, while sitting upon the students^ 
bench and listening to the old Patriarch who was the presid- 
ing genius of the college, it occurred to us, that if a faithful 



INTRODUCTION. 57 

report of his Lectures to liis pupils could be obtained, 
much good might be accomplished by its publication. 
Believing, as we did, that he who rescues from oblivion 
one thought of a great mind, is to that extent a public 
benefactor, we felt well assured that, if we could secure 
in some permanent form Mr. CampbeH's familiar talks, it 
would be doing the cause of truth a good service as well 
as the public a great favor. This conviction never left us, 
but continued to grow in importance even after we had 
finished our collegiate course and entered upon the great 
struggle of life. At last we determined to accomplish 
what had been for some time a cherished purpose. Ac- 
cordingly we employed Mr. Charles V. Segar, lately de- 
ceased, an excellent phonographer, to attend Bethany 
during the session of 1859-60, and report j\lr. Campbell's 
Morning Class Lectures and such portions of his Sermons 
as might be thought specially worthy of preservation. 
A part of the result of Mr. Segar's labor is given to the 
public in this volume. 

We do not claim to have in every respect a verbatim 
report, for we do not believe that any phonographer, how- 
ever skilled in his profession, could have thus reported 
Mr. Campbell. His elocution, though generally stately 
and impressive in a remarkable degree, and always in har- 
mony with the grand themes upon which he discoursed, 
sometimes, nevertheless, under the excitement incident 
to the discussion of topics involving the eternal destiny 
of man, became a living fire or a sweeping tornado, fore- 



58 INTRODUCTION. 

ing you to forget all idea of logical connection, and im- 
pressing you only with the idea of ^o^^^r. At such times 
he spoke with a rapidity and fervor of utterance which 
literally defied phonography, and so enchained the mind 
and heart as to paralyze the hand that would otherwise 
have reported his every sentence. Consequently, to ob- 
tain a verhatim report, in every respect, was simply im- 
possible. We do claim, however, that our reporter has 
given generally the exact language, and always substan- 
tially the meaning of Mr. Campbell. A^d should the 
reader occasionally notice a w^ant of logical connection 
and accuracy of style, it can be accounted for by remem- 
bering that we have endeavored to give a faithful report 
of what was delivered without any special care for either 
the one or the other of these ; the Lecturer's whole 
object being to properly impress his hearers with the 
grand realities upon which he discoursed. 

In addition to the real value of these Lectures, on ac- 
count of their historical connection with educational re- 
form and the useful instruction contained in them, they 
possess a melancholy interest, because they belong to the 
last session of Mr. Campbell's active duties in the c?ollege. 
They are the last consecutive Lectures he ever delivered. 
And it can not be denied that even these frequently fall 
below the standard of his Lectures during previous ses- 
sions. He had already begun to sink under the weight 
of labor and of years, and it is to be regretted that some one 
did not do, years ago, what we have endeavored to do, 



INTRODUCTION. 59 

when almost too late. This volume, then, while it will be 
admired by many, will be loved by more, not only because 
of its intrinsic value, but because of its endearing asso- 
ciations. 

W. T. M. ^ 
Cincinnati, Feh. 27, 1867. 



i 



LECTURE I. 



INTKODTJCTORY. 



Young Gentlemen : I am deeply sensible of this cor- 
dial reception ; and feel honored by you, through the fit- 
ting remarks of j^our speaker, on this occasion. I regard 
myself as placed by Providence in a very peculiar, and, 
I may say, affecting position ; yet, in the allotments of his 
infinite wisdom and goodness, I am placed where and as I 
am. Prompted by the feeling which grows out of the re- 
lation I sustain to you — akin to that of a father toward 
his children — perhaps, I can not do better on the present 
occasion, than to speak to you of things most intimately 
and agreeably associated with your present calling. 

The object of education is, to develop man, in harmony 
with his whole constitution, and his relations to the uni- 
verse. I am engaged in an effort to establish a system 
of education, concordant with the genius of human na- 
ture, and its bearings to the world, physically, intellectu- 
ally and morally. 

In the first place, with respect to the physical develop- 

^ When the session commenced, Mr. Campbell was absent on a 
lecturing tour, through the States of IlHnois and Missouri. Upon 
his arrival at home, the students of the college bade him welcome, 
in a happy speech by Mr. E. T. Porter, since deceased. The report 
of Mr. Campbeirs response to the students' welcome, is here in- 
serted as the introductory Lecture, because it sets forth, briefly and 
comprehensively, the object and character of the course of Lectures, 
delivered during the college term of 1859-60. — Eeporter. 

(61) 



62 LECTURE I. 

ment of man, it is obvious that he should possess an anal- 
ysis of his whole constitution, and that, too, in harmony 
with his duty and future destiny. This view of man re- 
quires that the Bible should be a text-book in every in- 
stitution of learning — from the infant school to the uni- 
versity ; inasmuch as it is an infallible revelation, in re- 
lation to himself, to his usefulness and happiness here, and 
his honor and glory hereafter. 

Education, in its every department, ought to be based 
upon a thorough investigation of man ; and this would re- 
quire an analysis of all his powers ; and first, with regard 
to the full development of his physical constitution, which 
is the basis of man. In examining the mortuary reports 
of different countries, we can not but remark how large a 
number of the human family lose health and life, through 
ignorance of the constitution of their nature. Indeed, a 
very large proportion of the human family depart this life 
prematurely, in consequence of their neglect of a proper 
and competent self knowledge. Hence, the necessity of a 
thorough knowledge on the part of man, of his physical, 
as well as of his intellectual and moral nature. 

Man being capable of possessing a knowledge of God, 
which is a peculiar differential attribute, it is impossible for 
him to form a just estimate of himself, without the re- 
vealed knowledge of God; hence, we say, that he should 
consecrate his whole body, soul and spirit, to the revealed 
will of God. Man's infallible knowledge of his Creator, 
being wholly dependent upon a supernatural revelation, 
renders it highly important, that this supernatural revela- 
tion should be a standing topic in every well-organized 
school. We, therefore, make the Bible a text-book of man 
as he was at first, as he is now, and as he must be hereaf- 
ter. But, in making use of the Bible as a text-book, we 



LECTURE I. 63 

pay no respect to existing orthodoxy or heterodoxy ; these 
being mere visionary theories, and not realities, nor at all 
adequate to the demands of human nature. 

The failure of popular systems of education (which ex- 
clude the Bible as a daily text- book), presents to us, very 
impressively, the truth that facts, and not theories, reali- 
ties, and not speculations, are essential to the true intent 
and meaning of education. Theories, void of facts, never 
can become the basis of religious science. All human 
theories are defective, and inadequate to the true and 
proper knowledge of man. True Science is always based 
on facts, and these facts, can only be safely founded on 
the revealed know^ledge of man, and not upon Grecian 
or Roman, or any modern speculations in regard to hu- 
manity. 

Man requires a revelation of himself, as much as he 
does of his Creator. The Bible is a revelation of man to 
himself, and of God to man. He needs a revelation of 
himself, from the Author of his being; as that alone can 
comprehend him, in all his relations to the universe, and 
his destiny in it. Therefore, we must adapt our whole 
system of education, to the entirety of man. This was 
our rudimental conception, in the establishment of Beth- 
any College. The Bible is the true theory of man ; and 
being the only book, that contains and imparts this knowl- 
edge, it is essential, that every school which has for its ob- 
ject, the enlightenment and the happiness of man, should 
adopt it; not simply as an occasional reading book, but as 
a preceptive subject of daily consideration. 

It has been urged as an objection to this system of edu- 
cation, that youth are incapable of thinking independently, 
of this great subject; and it has been assumed, that this 
book is not adapted to them, because of their inability to 



64 LECTURE I. 

apprehend and comprehend its important teachings. 
Hence the attempt to adapt its doctrines, to the capacity 
of the young, by more simple, rudimental and catecheti- 
cal instruction. This we should esteem to be a reproach 
upon the Author of the Bible; as though man were more 
competent than He, to address the human understanding 
in the infancy of man! Can not God speak as intelli- 
gibly to man, as man to his fellow; and that too in every 
stage of his being, from infancy to mature manhood? 

The Bible being addressed to the human family in the 
aggregate, by Him that knew what was in man, would of 
course be adapted to all intelligent beings; and more ade- 
quately than Viuj thing man could devise, in his imperfect 
knowledge of both God and himself. The Bible addresses 
humanity, in harmony with its entire capacity; and speaks 
as did the Apostles, to old men, to young men, and to 
babes in Christ. 

It is all important, that the elements of piety and hu- 
manity, should be inculcated in the first lessons of every 
school, from the lowest to the highest; and equally impor- 
tant that all education should be conducted with a view to 
the great object of qualifying man, to act his proper part 
in the drama of humanity, and thereby develop him, with 
reference to the world as it now is, and the world to come. 

The popular summary of education, is happily express- 
ed in the two words, literature and science. Literature 
comprehends languages, living and dead, accessible to man, 
merely as signs of ideas — a medium of communication, 
capable of developing the most subtle motives and objects 
that actuate humanity. Science has repect to the classi- 
fied knowledge of man — whether creature or Creator be 
the subject, and the classification must be adapted to the 
capacity and progress of the pupil. Our colleges, one and 



LECTURE I. 65 

all, are founded upon this view of language and science; 
the former as subservient to the latter. 

Morality has its facts and its documents as much as 
physical nature has. The true basis of moral science, has 
long been a question of doubtful disputation in the 
schools ; and, indeed, if we confine ourselves to the insti- 
tutes of Greece and Rome, the doubt still remains. But 
Moses in the Law, and Christ m the Gospel, have given 
as solid a foundation, for the moral relations and duties of 
man to God and man, as appear in the ordinances of na- 
ture, in reference to natural science. It is this view of 
the subject, which presents the great necessity of intro- 
ducing the Bible into every institution of literature and 
science ; for it alone imparts the true knowledge of man 
and of God, as he was and is, and must forever be. 

There is a very important difference between Natural Sci- 
ence, as based upon the facts of creation, usually called na- 
ture, and Moral Science, as based exclusively upon the facts 
of humanity and divinity. In the physical developments of 
nature, we have many text-books, because of the large field 
presented to the vision and understanding of man, in the 
positive works of creation and providence ; but in Moral 
Science, we have only one infallible text-book, and that is 
the Holy Bible — the charter of morality — having God for 
its author and man for its object. The objection urged by 
some to Moral Science, that it has not as solid a founda- 
tion as Physical Science, is true of Grecian, Roman and 
Anglican Science, but not so of Moral Science, as devel- 
oped in the Bible — a book which not only gives us pre- 
cepts of morality, but facts and documents, upon which 
moral obligation is based. We know it contains truths, 
both divine and human, which constitute the support of 
religion and morality, and that, by using it, we study God 



66 LECTURE I. 

in man, and man in God — tlie beino; made in the imao-e 
and likeness of God. 

We endeavor to establish all our instruction upon a 
positive divine revehition of God to man; for we need as 
much revelation in respect to the latter, as to the former; 
and we are glad to know that these views are not peculiar 
to us, but tha-t in the marrh of Science, and the growth 
of the human understanding, their correctness is being 
more and more realized. 

We might pause here, young gentlemen, in these gen- 
eral observations, to impress upon your minds, by a single 
illustration, the necessity of a divine revelation of the 
moral nature of man. Time was, when retaliation v/as 
enjoined as a duty, and revenge itself was esteemed ne- 
cessary to the happiness of an injured party. And this 
was the doctrine alike of philosophers and fools. But 
since the divinely enunciated precept, " Love your ene- 
mies," applied the touchstone to the misguided heart of 
man, it has been discovered, that apart from the happiness 
incident to obedience to the divine injunction, the malig- 
nity of any being, who is not a fiend incarnate, yields to 
the spirit's discipline of returning good for evil. 

In conclusion, young gentlemen, we are happy to say, 
we have here, a sort of Congressional College — represent- 
atives from the North, the South, the East and the West, 
a circumstance, not only agreeable, but profitable; result- 
ing in intimacies, which frequently redound to the mutual 
advantage of all the parties. 

But, leaving these and other matters, for a more full 
development in our regular Series of Lectures, which we 
congratulate ourselves in being able to deliver this session, 
I have only to hope, that a true appreciation of the ad- 
vantages which must accrue to you, from the thorough and 



LECTURE II. 67 

comprehensive course of instruction in our college, will 
prompt you to acquit yourselves honorably before God 
and men ; and thereby secure to yourselves, all the advan- 
tages, which a kind and beneficent Providence has placed 
within your reach. With these remarks, permit me to 
thank you for your esteemed attentions. 



LECTURE II. 



GENESIS I. 



Gentlemen : We commence properly, this morning, the 
consideration of a volume, surpassing all others in the 
blessings vouchsafed to man. It is a superlative w^ork, of 
transcendent value and importance. It spans the whole 
arch of time, leans upon eternity past and eternity to 
come, and comprehends time in its history and in its pro- 
phecy. It gives to man a knoAvledge, paramount to all 
knowledge of the sciences of earth ; j^ea, it involves his 
whole destiny, and is, therefore, the superlative study of 
life. 

There is an invigorating power in the principles and 
developments of this Book of books, which manifests it- 
self in the difference between that system of education, 
based upon the Bible, and that founded upon Moral Sci- 
ence, oftentimes falsely so called. Few men are capable 
of conducting or understanding a consecutive train of ab- 
stract reasoning — especially upon abstruse or speculative 
topics ; but almost every man of good common sense, can 
understand a matter of fact exhibition ; and, for this rea- 



68 LECTURE II. 

son, we cLaim that the Holy Bible, was never intended to 
present a theory of divinity. It simply furnishes a relia- 
ble statement of what God has done, and what man has 
done. The Bible is established upon a matter of fact 
foundation, and whatever it says in the form of didactic 
information, is essential to the improvement and happi- 
ness of man. What man can never comprehend, he can 
never use ; what is beyond his ken, he need not know ; 
hence, we see the goodness of God's infinite wisdom, in 
concealing some things, and revealing others, to man. 

As a book for calling forth superior qualities of the 
art of reading, it is worthy of all consideration. The 
importance of understanding, is not greater than the im- 
portance of properly reading, a chapter ; and we main- 
tain that it requires more and better learning to read a 
chapter of the Bible, as it should be read, than to read 
one of Cicero's orations ; and in some European colleges 
the highest degrees of honor are conferred upon the best 
readers. It requires hours of study, in many instances, 
to be able to read one verse or chapter in the Bible, so 
as to produce the proper eJBFect, upon the reader and the 
hearer. 

In the consideration of this book, it is necessary for 
you to understand, as you go along, in order the more 
successfully to appreciate the sequel. Much of its con- 
tents appears very simple to those of junior years ; but 
I assure you, young gentlemen, that they grow in value 
and in interest as man becomes riper in understanding. 
At the earliest age of accountability, the Bible should be 
the first book introduced to the young ; and where this is, 
or is not the case, the experience of mankind shows con- 
clusively that the Bible — the inspired volume — is the last 



LECTtRE II. 69 

book on earth 'which all men think of in their dying 
hours. 

Moses, the writer of this book, the author of what we 
denominate the Pentateuch, gives us all the reliable his- 
tory we have of the Word — the personal Logos — up to fif- 
teen hundred years before the birth of our Lord and Sa- 
viour. He antedates all the writers that have come down 
to the knowledge of man, and he antedates them an im- 
mense period of time, when we regard it in connection 
with the present age of the world. 

We are aware that some writers of modern, as well as 
of ancient, time, think the Mosaic account of creation 
should be discarded as erroneous, because the various 
strata of earth, according to Geology, evince a higher an- 
tiquity than five or six thousand years. The geological 
theory differs in some respects, from the record given by 
Moses. Nevertheless, we affirm his statement to be true, 
and shall stand or fall by it ; because it does not conflict 
with the scope and meaning of the six days labor, as we 
understand them. We place the inspired record, as given 
by Moses, under a divine commission, against all the the- 
ories founded upon nature or science, as interpreted by 
man; and we believe the Mosaic account will grow 
brighter and brighter, as the geological theory fades and 
recedes into comparative oblivion. ^ 

Moses wrote the first book of his history under the title 
Genesis; which word, in our modern language, signifies 
origin^ generation^ that is to say, the book of creation. 

*In this statement, we see Mr. Campbell's great reverence for the 
Word of God. He was not opposed to Geology; but when there 
was a seeming conflict between the Geological and Mosaic Records, 
he did not hesitate to adopt the latter. With him the Bible was 
the only authoritative historv of man. M. 



70 LECTURE II. 

Hence our inspired author, in the first oracle, announces 
the great cardinal fact, that, " In the beginning, God cre- 
ated the heavens and the earth." Undoubtedly, reference 
was here made to the universe proper — the material uni- 
verse — connected and identified with the history of man. 
The given names of the different creations which follow 
are very instructive and suggestive. We are so consti- 
tuted that yve must have some representative, intelligible 
form or expression, of every idea which we cherish in our 
minds; and this is the important characteristic of all 
language. 

The clause in the beginning^ we understand to mean 
originally — at the first — in some undefined period. There 
are parallel expressions in the Bible ; for instance : " In 
the hegiiining was the Word, and the Word was with God, 
and the Word was God." " The same was in the beginning 
with God." " The Lord possessed me in the beginning of 
his way, before his works of old." '' I was set up from 
everlasting, from the beginning^ or ever the earth was." 

Ood is here used in the sense of Creator^ the originator, 
the maker of all things, and of course out of nothing. 
Ood^ " the creator of the heavens and the earth," created — 
that is, made — all things of the material universe, and 
" without him, was not any thing made that was made." 
" The North and the South Thou hast created them." 
For, " He spake, and it was done, he commanded and it 
stood fast." " He commanded and they were created." 
'' Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created 
these things." " Create in me a clean heart, oh God" — 
make a new thing, some thing which had no existence be- 
fore. Heaven and earth meaning the material universe 
and all its tenants. All the words of this verse are pre- 
fatory statements, giving nothing further than the fact 



LECTURE n. 71 

that God is the fountain of the universe ; the originator 
of it. '' By the word of the Lord were the heavens made.'' 
Afterward the historian proceeds to furnish a detailed ac- 
count of the condition of things antecedent to the creation 
of the heavens. 

The second verse is especially important, inasmuch as 
it has to do with the many dates entertained by geologists, 
in regard to the antiquity of creation. But as already 
remarked, we take the Mosaic account, against all the 
w^orld of authority of whatever nature — always accepting 
hoAvever, the geological history, so far as it accords with 
the inspired record. In this verse Moses presents us with 
a statement of the condition of things, in that undefined 
period, anteceding all the acts in the drama of creation, 
presented in the sequel of this chapter. How long a 
measure of time is assumed in this series of facts, is be- 
yond the mental scrutiny of mortal man. It seems that 
the earth w^as premature matter, "void of form — '' a des- 
olate, confused mass ; and during this period, no light hav- 
ing yet been created, darkness brooded or rested over the 
mighty deep — the fathomless abyss — and enveloped all 
things. 

"And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the 
waters.'' Here w^e have a grand and stupendous idea sug- 
gested. This indicates the iniatory step,' or preparation 
for a marvelous act of creation. " Thou sendeth forth 
thy Spirit, they are created; thou renew^est the face of the 
earth." ^' By his Spirit he hath garnished the heavens ; 
and all the host of them, by the breath (Spirit) of his 
mouth were they made." 

The language " Spirit of God," as here used, does not 
probably signify what is called the Spirit of God now. 
In the Hebrew style it is regarded in the superlative de- 



72 LECTURE II. 

gree. We read of cedars and mountains as being asso- 
ciated with ideas of God in the Holy Scriptures, and in 
the style of the patriarchs, any thing that was incompre- 
hensibly great, was considered in connection with some- 
thing calculated to enhance the conception of its grandeur. 
It is probable, therefore, that such should be our concep- 
tion of the term in this connection. The Spirit of God 
is a mighty thing, as indicated by this language, and 
should always be regarded in the highest degree of con- 
ception. It should be duly considered, for it acts a very 
important part as set forth in the drama of creation. 

With respect to the Spirit, it is well in passing, to make 
a note of other significations given to the Avord, in various 
relations. We read in the common version (in reference 
to God), of a Spirit, which by the way is a very old mis- 
conception. It also says, God is a Light; and it is just 
as w^ell as to say God is a Spirit, We also learn that man 
is a spirit. It is said again that God is Love, In this 
book some translators have been compelled to abandon a 
uniform method of translation, so true it is, that an error 
committed in the interpretation of the Will or the Word 
of God, begets the necessity of other errors, to preserve 
consistency. They might as well have said God is a Love 
as God is a Spirit. But the truth is God is Spirit, God is 
Love, God is Light. These are the three capital divisions. 
He is not a light, a love, nor a spirit. We have light, spirit 
and love in various forms, but God is Light absolute, Spirit 
absolute, and Love absolute. 

Those who are familiar with logic, will at once com- 
prehend the meaning of the different species and terms 
made use of. In order to have a firm and clear founda- 
tion for the study of the Bible, or any other study, we 
must possess a knowledge of the different terms and 



LECTUHE II. 73 

])lira?eolo£ry it develops. Erery science Ins ii">; T^ocullar 
terminolog3^ In tlie Bible we are tnught not b}^ abstract 
rules, but by doctrines perfectly jidnpted to tlie fullest de- 
velopment of man, so far as God has vouchsafed him pow- 
er to appreciate them. Of course our understanding of 
the Bible and its laws, is measured by our apprehensive 
and comprehensive ability. If oar eyes, and ears, and 
other parts of the huuian system, were not adapted to the 
purpose for which they were created, w^e could not see, 
hear, nor use our other senses efFectivel3^ '' God hath 
measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted 
out heaven with a span, and comprehended the dust of the 
earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, 
and the hills in the balance.'' Everything was good, per- 
fect in creation and adaptation, most excellent in intention, 
and grand in execution. What splendid imagerj^, yet not 
at all exaggerated. Every particle in this vast universe of 
matter and animation, has been weighed in the mighty 
balance of the Divine mind, and not a particle of residu- 
ary matter remained when the universe was completed. 
The composition of oxygen and nitrogen in the air, its 
pressure and other relations to nature, in all its forms, its 
wonderful phenomena — indeed all the world are in exact 
harmony with the Divine conception. We repeat, J'oung 
gentlemen, by way of impressing your minds with the im- 
portance of these great truths, that with God, wdiat was first 
in intention, was last in execution. The Divine conception 
of sound and light, existed when the eye and ear of man and 
beast were not yet created. The peculiar qualities of 
mind and matter, the composition and various character- 
istics of the air we inhale and exhale, the marvelous law 
of o-ravitation, the revolution of the earth, and the rota- 
tion of the seasons, the creation, redemption and isalvation 



74 



LECTURE III. 



of the Avorld of liuman beings, were all, first and last, 
^yitll the Supreme Creator and Preserver, who is the same 
yesterday, to day and forever.^ (Bdl rings) 



LECTURE III. 

Gexesis I. 

Gentlemen : We now have before us the details of the 
drama of creation, and m the third verse we have in a 
few words a grand presentation of the powder of God. 
When God spoke for the first time,' as recorded here, it 
was with reference to material creation; and he said, "Let 
there be light, aijd there was light.^' But this fiat has noth- 
ing to do wdth the sun. This was but one act, in a perfect 
and magnificent programme, of all that w^as to enliven and 
perpetuate animal and vegetable existence. Confusion 
and darkness seem to have preceded this fiat, ^vhereby 
light was developed; but hovf long we know^ not; and pro- 
bably if w^e did, we could make no profitable use of the 

-^The reader must remember that these Lectures never occupied 
more than half an hour. The manner of proceeding was as follows : 
at the ringing of the bell, the students assembled in the College Chap- 
el. After the calling of the roll, the young gentleman, whose time 
it was to read, came forward to the desk Vvhere Mr. Campbell sat, 
and read the chapter which followed in the regular order. At the 
conclusion of the reading, Mr. Campbell led in prayer. This exer- 
cise usually consumed about half an hour; and then the remaining 
half hour was occupied by the Lecture, or in questioning the class. 
Sometimes the bell would ring in the midst of an interesting discus- 
sion, and this will account for the abrupt manner in which some of 
these lectures close. M. 



LECTURE III. 75 

knowledge. The awful solemness of nature was broken 
by God's oracle ^*Be light/^ '' He spake, and it was done ; 
he commanded and it stood fast." God never w^orks in 
the dark. " For God commanded the lio-ht to shine out 
of darkness." "He coverest himself w^ith light^ as with 
a garment, and stretcheth out the heavens like a curtain. 
He spreadeth the light upon it." In this positive and cre- 
ative fiat God pronounced the imperative command, " Be 
light," and the darkness thereupon became the mater 
(mother) of light; the two being divided and separated, 
each from the other, in the most miraculous manner. 

" And God saw the light that it was good/' in other 
words, it was w^hat he intended it should be. 

The magnificent fiat creating light, as presented in 
this connection, is superbly sublime, in conception and 
expression. I do not wonder that both ancient and modern 
critics present this as one of the finest examples of true 
suhlimitj^, in language or speech. True sublimity of lan- 
guage does not consist of mere verbiage, of high sound- 
ing w^ords, void of power and significance. " Let there 
be light" is one of the most superlative elements of an 
oracle, divine or human, ever read or heard by man. 

When such passages are found in the Bible, we need 
not wonder that it requires more and better learning to 
read a chapter of Holy Writ, as it should be read, than 
to read one of Cicero's orations ; or that in European col- 
leges honors are awarded to the best readers. We find 
much in the sacred volume that appears very simple to 
undeveloped minds, but it grows in value and importance 
as men become riper in years and understanding. It often 
requires hours of study to enable us to read a verse or 
chapter in the Bible as it should be pronounced. 

Whenever it is desirable to investigate subjects or ideas 



76 LECTURE III. 

relating either to mind or matter, we must endeavor to 
obtain a kno\Yledge of the adjective terms bearing upon 
those things ; such being the only, or at least the practical, 
way in whicli to acquire a knowledge of such subjects. 
God sets many examples in his economy, by giving repre- 
sentative signs of ideas. " And God called the light day, 
and the darkness he called night." Here is a designation 
and formal division set up between light and darkness. 
" And the evening and the morning were the first day." 

This last expression, concerning the union of the two 
portions of time, under the head and title of one and " the 
first da}^," is deserving of close observation. It is a pass- 
age of scripture which has troubled and perplexed a great 
many students, to understand, and the great mass of man- 
kind fail to comprehend its meaning at all. We endeavor, 
or make an attempt at least, to bring the whole difficulty 
and its solution within the territory of the understanding 
and the precincts of reason, by what some may denomi- 
nate a novel plan or theory. 

God, in his infinite individuality and omnipotence, re- 
tires within himself, then utters a mighty fiat, and at his be- 
hest all creation springs erect into existence — into the 
most consummate and mature existence. In support of 
our idea, we presume to hold, that Adam never was a boy ; 
that Eve never was a girl; that the birds of the air, the 
beasts of the field, and the fishes of the sea, also the noble 
and majestic palms of Galilee, that lifted their lofty heads 
so grandly toward the heavens — yea, every thing through- 
out the entire range of the animal and vegetable king- 
doms, all that constituted the universe, were in their first 
stage, created in a state of high and wondrous perfection. 
The oak did not spring from an acorn. Can any one show 
when or where God created a seed, or left any thing made 



* LECTURE III. 77 

by him in a state of imperfection or immaturity? Un- 
doubtedly, God originally placed all things in their full 
and mature stature. ^'^ 

It is in accordance ^yith this theory that we look at the 
sun in his first attitude with respect to the latitude and lon- 
gitude of man's first locality — the garden of Eden. When 
that great luminary was formed and placed in the heavens, 
it did not appear to Adam, rising from the east, but first 
appeared at high noon, in full-orbed and surpassing splen- 
dor. And how emblematic of perfection and design was 
its position ! From that stand-point, the sun began to de- 
scend, until it disappeared from Adam in the western hor- 
izon. The earth having revolved once round on its axis, 
from west to east, the splendid orb, at the end of twenty- 
four hours, had arrived (the next day noon) at its starting 
point, '' and the evening and the morning were the first 
day.'' In the absence of any positive scriptural explana- 
tion of this matter, we put forth our own theory, wdiich, 
if not accepted as orthodox, can not be pronounced im- 
probable, nor at variance with reason or the laws of na- 
ture. 

The creation of the Garden of Eden is a matter of 
great interest and importance. And in connection with 
its development in history, we remark, in passing, that 
from the time Adam was banished from Paradise, the 
drift, the course of mankind has been westward. How 
strikingly is this fact illustrated in modern times? 

We are told that Adam was placed in the Garden of 

^ This theory is evidently aimed at what is know^n as the pro- 
gressive theory of creation. Modern infidelity has sought to estab- 
lish the view that man w^as once a monad, and has gradually devel- 
oped to what he now is. Mr. C. had no sympathy with this pseudo- 
Bcientific view^ of the creation. M. 



78 LECTURE iir. 

Eclon, and that in the midst thereof the tree of knowl- 
edge was placed, which, by the way, is a figurative ex- 
pression. It was the fruit of the tree that gave the 
knowledge, by which Adam and Eve should become as 
gods — knowing good and evil ; and man could not have 
one without the other. It is a synecdoche — an expression 
in which a part is put for the whole — as the tree, in this 
case, includes the fruit. 

We have an allusion to the creation of Eve, in the sec- 
ond chapter. The Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon 
Adam — a sleep in which he doubtless became totally un- 
conscious — and so profound was that sleep, that a rib was 
taken from his side, and the wound healed, without Adam's 
knowledge. Of this rib God made the being called wo- 
man, which means, in the Hebrew tongue, taken out of 
man. 

The instant Adam awoke he recognized her at a glance, 
and said, "- This is bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh ; 
she shall, therefore, be called woman, because she was 
taken out of man." There is no philosophy more natu- 
ral than this, and in this we have the origin of the three 
personalities — father, mother and child; the first, second 
and third. We have the same in God, notwithstanding 
all the fighting about the matter between Trinitarians and 
Unitarians. The distinctions I, thou, he, are purely gram- 
matical, though they originated in God. God holds a con- 
sultation within himself: "Let us make man, in our im- 
age." The baptismal formula, and the benediction, but de- 
velop what is here a germ. 

In the third chapter, the serpent is presented for our 
consideration. We call him serpent, as Moses did, but we 
presume that was not his name originally. The word ser- 
pent means creeper. He fell into this condition because 



LECTURE III. 79 

of the deception he practiced upon the inhabitants of the 
garden. I presume he was originallj very like man. I 
do not mean man as he is at present, but as he was origi- 
uaily. Men have become greatly humanized/'"^ and in this, 
our day, some are to be found scarcely distinguishable 
iVora the lower animals. 

The serpent is introduced to our knowledge as the most 
subtle beast of the field. There is a great deal in the 
cliOice of an instrument for the accomplishment of diffi- 
cult ends. The serpent was, doubtless, more familiar with 
man, in those days, than was any other creature. It was 
easy, therefore, for the woman to believe him, although we 
recognize fully the truth that it was the part of wisdom 
then, as now% to be governed by the counsel of the Great 
Father and Friend of humanity. The serpent enters upon 
his task in a wonderfully captivating manner, fully justi- 
fying his introduction as the most subtle (cunning) beast 
of the field ; and you will find a great deal of plausibility 
and deep policy in the temptation to wdiich our first pa- 
rents were subjected. Moses quotes his words, and leaves 
us to interpret them. He says to Eve, substantially, " Is 
it possible that you must not eat of every tree ? Certainly 
you must be mistaken ! God has not said so." (There is 
a great deal in the manner of presenting a topic.) The 
woman said, '^ We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the 
garden, but of the fruit of the tree vfhich is in the midst 
of the garden, God hath said, je shall not eat of it; 
neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.'^ The serpent hav- 
ing secured the attention and confidence of the woman, 
now says boldlj^, ^' You shall not surely die." This is a 
perfect illustration of the v\'orkings of human nature ! 

'"^ A quaint, rather than correct, use of the word. 



80 LECTL'RE III. 

Tlie more tlioroiiglily wc study this book, the more fully 
do we see mini and liis nature developed ; for there is no 
^vork in the world that shows him up so impartially as the 
Bible. It speaks like an honest man under oath — telling 
the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. 

I entertain no doubt that the serpent was incarnated in 
the human form.* 

AVhen the woman looked at the fruit, and saw its 
dazzling beauty (for it was pleasant to the eye), she yielded 
to the additional fascination of becoming wise, and plucked 
and ate it. She then handed it to her husband, who like- 
Avise ate. We are disposed to make all the apologies we 
can for poor humanity, but are much more concerned 
about the consequences of their sin, than about the mo- 
tives Avhich pronipted its commission. 

The moment they tasted the fruit their eyes were 
opened, and they saw that they were naked. How% in the 
name of reason, Vvo have been asked, was it that they 
thus made this discovery ? They were not clad before ; 
how did they remain in ignorance of the fact, until they 

* Whether this be true or not, it must be evident that the iiiflu- 
ence brought to bear upon Eve was of the most powerful kind. V>'e 
can not conclude, a priori^ that the cojiquest was an easy oiie. 
There were too many incentives to a sinless life, and the conse- 
quence, which must necessarily follow an act of disobedience, alto- 
gether too fearful, to suppose, for a moment, that the v/oman readily 
assenteil to tlie serpent's desires. Doubtless, tiie conflict was a long 
and fearful one, in which the whole power of Satan wi^ wai:ed 
against the innocent inhabitants of Eden ; and as the victory Vv'as 
finally on the side of Satan, we are inclined to the opinion that the 
stiiteiuent is true that he ^' was incarnated in the l)umari form." He 
would mo^t probably exert a greater seduciive influence in thisibrni 
than in any other; ibr '* a fellow loeling makes us wondrous kind.' 

M. 



LECTURE III. 81 

had fallen ? What does this mean ? This point has been, 
in a great degree, overlooked, although it has occasionally 
been the subject of sharp controversy. We endeavor to 
impart our views of the question by the use of this figure : 
You have a beautiful lamp burning before you. It must 
have a wick and pure oil, in order to produce a brilliant 
light. This brilliancy continues while it burns, but it goes 
out and nothing is left but smoke and blackness, which 
can only be seen by the light of another lamp. There 
was a halo of glory about the persons of Adam and Eve, 
as about the blaze of the beautiful lamp. The beauty and 
glory of their persons, in their primeval state, was doubt- 
less superior to the beautj^ and glory of the sun ; but the 
moment they ate of the forbidden fruit, the lamp of their 
glory w^ont out, the brilliant halo varnished, and they stood 
in the presence of God, and of one another, naked and 
ashamed. 

They then sewed together leaves, to make for them- 
selves " aprons^ The original word does not mean apt'ons, 
and we owe the corruption of the word, like many other 
errors, to the influences of fashion. They were more 
properly vails, which they threw over their persons. 

Adam and Eve, in their primeval state, were the beau- 
tiful lamps of the Garden of Eden, but the moment they 
violated the divine commandment, the glovj of God de- 
parted from them. Before this, their persons were envel- 
oped in a halo of beauty and brightness, and were invisi- 
ble even to themselves. Denuded of this, as a conse- 
quence of sin, they stood naked, ashamed and self con- 
demned. We must take facts, as they are stated, in their 
historical import, and endeavor to analyze them. 

" And they heard the voice of the Lord God, walking 
in the Garden," Vvdien coming to pay them one of his 



82 LECTURE III. 

usual visits, when probably he took them by the hand as 
we do each other, and conversed with them familiarly. 
Adam and Eve hid themselves. Condemned by their own 
consciences, they were ashamed and afraid to meet their 
benefactor and friend — an inevitable consequence of sin. 
We are told by Moses, that the Lord God said: ''Adam, 
where art thou?" What is thy apology? No man can 
apologize satisfactorily for the flagrant violation of a di- 
vine law. Saith Adam, " I heard thy voice in the garden, 
I was afraid because I was naked, and hid myself.'' How 
childlike was this ! Yet it was all he could say in justifi- 
cation of himself, save only that he had been tempted by 
Eve; and the woman, in palliation of her offense, added 
that she was beguiled by the serpent. This is human- 
nature throughout the history of mankind. 

Beginning at the fourteenth verse of the third chapter, 
we have the report of the Judgment in Paradise. First, 
the serpent was cursed above all cattle, and above every 
beast of the field, aiid doomed to crawl upon his belly in 
the dust of earth all his life. No doubt, he was the 
most beautiful creature of earth, before this, but was 
thus paralyzed, and made to grope his way by the convolu- 
tions and contortions of his paralyzed body. 

" I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and be- 
tween thy seed and her seed ; and it shall bruise thy head, 
and thou shalt bruise his heel.'' No oracle in the New 
Testament, concerning Jesus Christ, can be made clearer 
to the understanding than this. Christ, dying upon the 
cross, took away the terrors of that death, wrought by the 
serpent. The Christian man has nothing to fear from death, 
and should meet it always, with a smile of resignation. 
Christ came into the world to reinstate man in the bless- 
ings forfeited by Adam's disobedience. God expelled 



LECTURE IV. 83 

Adam from the garden, lest he should eat the fruit of the 
tree of life, and become immortal in misery, with no hope 
of changing or dying. Therefore, like all the acts of 
the All-wise and Beneficent Creator in dealing with man, 
it was gracious. {Bell rings,) 



LECTURE IV. 

Gentlemen : We take for our consideration, in this morn- 
ing's lecture, a passage of Scripture, which suggests to 
us, two of the grandest themes in the universe. They 
are the two transcendent themes in the whole area of hu- 
man reason and human thought. They are the two great 
summaries — the grand categories, which God has given to 
man, and w4iich he alone could give. They are two great 
public personages, the most eminent that ever lived ; the 
one is Adam, the other is Christ; in other words, Adam 
first, and Adam second — the one, the earthly father of 
man; the other, the heavenly son of man. The first was 
the image; the second, the express image of God. They 
were both representative of all before them, and both rep- 
resentative persons of all who came after them. They 
are the most perfect representative characters of man- 
kind, spoken of, in the entire limits of literature, and 
they are so, in the superlative order of representation. 

The first Adam was made in the image of God — the 
most splendid creature, we presume — and w^e presume on 
good authority — that ever lived in the w^orld. Of course, 
we do not mean to convey the idea, that his spiritual per- 
fection exceeded that of Christ ; but in himself, in his 



84 LECTURE IV. 

own personality, he was the embodiment of the entire 
universe, in the two great elements of mind and matter. 
He was an epitome, of the spiritual and animal creation, 
or, if you please, of the animal, intellectual, moral and 
spiritual nature ; so that he was a perfect animal and a 
perfect spirit. A person like this, is a glorious creation 
— transcendently sublime, being so regarded, in the wis- 
dom of the vfisest judges, in the highest senate in the uni- 
verse ; nor need we w^onder, that the preamble to his cre- 
ation, was the most sublime ever published on earth or in 
heaven. 

By the word, and through the fiat of the Almighty — 
all other things beino^ created, God commanded the first 
spiritual being into existence. It was in this wise that He 
first broke the awful silence of eternity: ''Let there be 
light," whereby brilliant light sprang out of gloomy dark- 
ness — which, so far as we can conceive, became the parent 
of light, the most singular offspring ever know^n. 

When the then existing creation w^as consummated, when 
the entire work of all but the last act of creation had been 
completed, God retires within Himself, as if in solemn de- 
liberation — and in a sentence, unrivaled for beauty, brev- 
ity and wonderful significance. He thus announces the work 
of the sixth day of creation — ''Let us make man in our im- 
age, after our likeness; '' and let them have (He adds), do- 
minion — possession of this earth and all its appurtenances. 
Why, this singular expression so unlike any other in Holy 
Writ, if it w^ere not to arrest the attention of man, to fix 
the mind of succeeding generations, upon the transcendent 
import of the first oracle, that gave birth to the intellect- 
ual and spiritual — the moral and natural population of the 
earth ? 

In this connection, keeping in mind the form " let ^6S,'^ 



LECTURE IV. 85 

it will be ^vell to observe, the peculiar and characteristic 
style of the language employed, which clearly indicates 
pluralitj^; the doctrine and existence of three persons in 
the Godhead.* Preceding acts of creation were introduced 
by the expression, " let there be ;" for example, " Let there 
be light," '' Let there be a firmament ; " but here the form 
of expression suggests meditation^ consultation, or mutual 
understanding on the part of the creative powder. By way 
of further confirmation of the sublime doctrine of the Trin- 
ity, w^e find similar passages, referring particularly to man. 
At one time Grod said, " Behold the man is become as one 
of us. And upon another memorable occasion. He says, 
''Let us go down and confound their language.'^ Again 
we have, " Whom shall 1 send, who will go for ws." Also 
this language, '' For unto us a child is born, unto us a son 
is given." 

God commanded the earth to bring forth man. Was 
that all ? Was it simply to raise up the form of man ? 
Was not that wonderful form, next inspired with the breath 
of the Almighty ? Does not Job, the oldest writer in the 
world, when translated, literally say, '' The Lord builded 
me up, but the Spirit of the Almighty hath given me life ? ^^ 
The house was built, and then the tenant was installed. 

^ 'No man ever received more heartily the doctrine of the Trinity, 
as taught in the Bihle^ than Mr. Cariipbell. It is true, that he ob- 
jected to the scholastic jDliraseology and dogmatic utterances, on this 
subject, of many of the human creeds, but he full}" indorsed and rev- 
erently accepted the doctrine of the pre-existence of Christ. Be- 
cause he sometimes spoke against the abuse of this doctrine by the 
schools, some hyper-Trinitarians have concluded, that he held to 
the Unitarian view of the Divinity of Christ. But in this, they only 
illustrate what is a common fault among Theologians, viz: to con- 
demn every man, who does not accept their theory of a thing, as if 
he did not believe the thing itself. M. 



86 LECTURE IV. 

God made man to stand up in full animal being, and then 
breathed into him, the breath of lives. He breathed into 
man, the animal and intellectual, the moral and spiritual 
life — all were imparted to him, and man stood forth a 
truthful likeness of the great Jehovah, possessing a plu- 
rality of attributes and personalities. 

The order of creation as you well know, was of three 
persons, embodying the image of God. The second per- 
son of humanity proper, was taken out of the side, near 
the heart of man, and it was thus, that man and woman 
were created — possessed alone of the image of God, in all 
the universe, having in themselves a sublime combination 
of the bodily or physical nature with the Spirit Eternal. 

We again call attention for a moment, to Adam as he 
was at the beginning. We have a very simple declaration, 
the most sententious ever heard, and that in a single pe- 
riod. ''Let us make man in our image, and let him have 
authority over all the earth." This was an oracle like the 
rest — like the one when God stood in the dark silence of 
eternity, and in His Almighty dignity, commanded light 
to be. All the time. Omniscience saw and comprehended 
all things, to the end of creation's programme. The 
heavens were spread out and garnished, the air, the water 
and the earth filled Avith their appropriate tenantries, and 
finally, at the bidding of God, Adam arose from the dust. 
In the twinkling of an eye, he stood forth erect, a perfect, 
a most beautiful representative of Deity, in the person of 
humanity. It was not enough to say, " Let us make 
man in our image ; " hence, as if to make the oracle more 
impressive and complete, God adds, "After our likeness," 
after our similitude, and then and there installs him in the 
dominion and possession of the entire earth, over the fish 
of the sea, and the fowls of the air, over the cattle and 



LECTURE IV. 87 

over the very reptile, that cra\vls upon the face of the 

earth. So God created man in his image, male and female, 

created he them. 

We observe then that the highest honor vouchsafed to 

man, and the greatest glory to vhich he could have as- 
pired, is anticipated, and bestowed upon him, in the very 
moment of his creation — incorporated as an element of 
his original constitution, in that he possesses the spiritual 
likeness of the Creator. 

How can man be in the image of God? has been for 
ages, and still is, a question of absorbing interest to many 
minds. How could he be possessed of such an attribute, 
composed as he is, of flesh and blood, bone and muscle ? 
The discussion of this question has figured largely in the 
writings of skeptics, and has formed an important element 
of their arguments, or what we more properly denominate 
sophistries, against the Bible, as a book of divine inspira- 
tion. But the likeness of man to God does not convey 
the idea, when thoroughly investigated and understood, of 
a material image. That «ould not be ; for God has no ma- 
teriality about him. Nor does the identity of the divine 
likeness belong to the personal portion— the corporiety of 
man. As I have frequently remarked, and the fact is one 
generally understood by the intelligent portion of man- 
kind — every man wears out, or lives out, a larger or 
smaller number of bodies in his life time ; or, to state the 
fact differently, and according to the laws of physiology, the 
whole physical system of man is changed every seven yfears.^ 

■^ This is a popular error, and has no foundation in fact. It is a 
matter of some surprise that Mr. Campbell should adopt a theory 
so unphilosophical, and so at variance with actual experience. The 
whole physical system of man frequently undergoes a number of 
changes, witliin the space of seven years. Physically considered, it 



88 LECTURE IV. 

Still there must be some one — some grand essential attri- 
bute of man, that knows no change, no dissolution, for the 
image of God is born by humanity. That similitude can 
not be material, as God has no materiality. His govern- 
ment is not material, neither is the soul of man — thouo-h 
that may die, so far as its animal nature is concerned; 
that is, its life may cease to exist. What, then, is the iden-_ 
tity, and wherein consists the image of God ? 

Gentlemen, the spiritual attribute of man ! — that is the 
eternal differentia, which gives him the image, which im- 
parts to man the likeness of God — the Creator of all 
things. And what is this image, this divine characteris- 
tic, which stands out in such bold relief, on the canvass 
of the universe, but the type of the great heir of human- 
ity ! We some times say — and say w^ith apparent propri- 
ety, too — that knowledge is the only mark of resemblance. 
But the devil has knowledge, and a vast deal of it, too ; 
yea, through the abundance of that knowledge, he knows 
man better than do all the savans of earth. 

Nothing can be more sublime about man, than his spir- 
itual attributes. Adam, the first man, was, in his original 
structure, of earth, earthy; until he received the breath — 
the immortal spirit of God ; while Christ, the second 
Adam, was, from the beginning, heavenly and spiritual ; 
but in his own nature, he assumed the qualities of human- 
ity, which he triumphantly supported to the end of his 
earthly mission. We may properly add, that there was 
no infringement between one or another attribute of his 

requires a very short time for " old things to pass away, and all 
things to become new." One of the most wonderful manifestations 
of nature is, the rapid change which takes place in the physical 
man, without any change in his personal identity. This is a phe- 
nomenon which science has nevev been able to explain. M. 



LECTURE V. 89 

humanity upon his divinity. He was perfect in all these 
respects. 

From what we have oiFered in our discursory remarks 
this morning, you may, perhaps, be enabled to entertain a 
more elevated and comprehensive view of man, and to un- 
derstand the important fact, and reason, of his being the 
end of all things created, and the crowning work of .crea- 
tion as well. Every thing from the center to the circum- 
ference of animate or inanimate existence, is all for man ; 
and man is for God. Hence the salvation of the human 
family is the grand and glorious climax of all ideas, ever 

cherished by mankind on earth, or angels in heaven. 

{Bell rings) 



LECTURE V. 

Genesis I. 

Gentlemen : We open our observations this morning," 
in continuation and conclusion of yesterday's lecture. We 
shall refer to like subjects in similar expressions, yet, upon 
close examination, we presume you will find sufficient va- 
riation to justify our apparent repetition. All this par- 
tial repetition and elaboration is indulged in with the hope 
that the importance and true character of our themes may 
be more fully and clearly impressed upon your memories* 
Our last lecture had reference particularly to the crea- 
tion of man, and while our remarks this morning will re- 
trospect in part the area already traversed, they will, as a 
whole, bear upon the superiority of man, and the wonder- 



90 LECTURE V. 

ful wisdom and goodness of the Creator, as manifested in 
the closing acts of his six days' hibor. 

In the study of the facts associated with the first ap- 
pearance of man, we discover that God has a moral char- 
acter, as well as a creative character. He is first intro- 
duced as the Creator, and subsequently he appears as the 
moral Governor of the universe. The foundations of man's 
morality are being laid when God says, '' Let us make 
man." He utters an oracle no less remarkable in style 
than significance. Before it is uttered, a solemn pause en- 
sues, clearly showing that God was about to produce a 
work of unprecedented importance. The earth is built 
and finished, the heavens are spread out and garnished. 
All is ready for man. Awful solemnity exists for the 
time being, and the silence is only broken by the declara- 
tion, " Let us make man, in our image, after our likeness. '' 

God speaks of things that are not, as though they w^ere 
actually self-existent, and co-eternal with himself. The 
solemn pause occurs, as if he were thinking within him- 
self. And is not all this in harmony with his plurality — 
his triune character — as being God in the person of the 
Father, in the person of the Son, and in the person of the 
Holy Spirit ? And to enhance the importance of man, 
God forms him, his perfect image in the spiritual respect. 

We claim that the trinity, the phirality, appears here, 
inasmuch as he does not say let me make man, but let us 
make man. Very lofty is this, indicating the idea of so- 
ciety in God. And God imparts to man extraordinary 
and paramount qualities. He elevates him in his nature 
and authority, above all other creations, makes him sus- 
ceptible of moral pleasure, and capable of enjoying moral 
relations. He enables man to understand, to speak, and 
to rejoice with joy unspeakable. This is what we are 



LECTURE V. 91 

pleased to consider a climax of grandeur, so far as mate- 
rial nature is exhibited on the part of man. God also 
installs Adam the ruler of all things earthly — as much so 
as Christ is the Ruler of all things, human and divine. 
What a Lordship ! How transcendently magnificent is 
the entire oracle, in conferring the greatest power and the 
highest honors upon mortal man ! 

The superiority of man is strikingly developed by com- 
parison. Wonderful and grand are the qualities that dis- 
tinguish man from all things else ; for there is no creature 
beside man, on the face of the earth, capable of being in- 
ducted into the conception of a moral idea. You may 
impart different kind of instruction to animals — to the 
horse, the dog, or the elephant, and other beasts of the 
field, as well as birds of the air. You may teach them to 
regard their names and obey orders, train them to perform 
acts, some useful and some fantastic ; but you can never 
communicate to any animal the idea of moral obligation. 
To conceive the relations and nature of all these realities, 
requires powers which are reserved, as the highest charac- 
teristics and the exclusive characteristics of man. He 
alone, of earthly beings, is susceptible of spiritual and 
moral influence ; and he ought, therefore, to be regarded 
as the favored object of creation, as compared with all 
other beings. These excellencies were given by Divinity 
to man, under the conditions of his birthright, and he pos- 
sesses one surpassing all terrestrial distinctions. 

There is not a creature of the brute kind, made to look 
up to heaven. The very eye of man is calculated to look 
upward, in order to scan the heavens in their celestial 
splendtr ; while all, or nearly all, the creatures below him, 
are formed to look downward, or straightforward upon the 
earth. All the higher attributes, are reserved and be- 



92 LECTURE V. 

stowed upon man. Among these, and the one paramount 
in importance, is the capacity man possesses to enjoy all 
conditions and realities, associated with intellectual and 
moral feeling. This is one of the great lessons taught us 
in the opening scenes of creation. Man is distinguished 
by his ability to communicate with every thing in the uni- 
verse. He only has the spiritual and moral requisites, to 
be regarded in connection with the spiritual and eternal 
attributes of the Divine Author of all things. 

In the essentials of superiority possessed by man, there 
is a marked order or gradation. Some of the parts con- 
stituting the whole, are superior, one to another. Man's 
soul and spirit, are the grand cardinal characteristics of 
his individuality. But the soul of man is different from 
the spirit ; as the spirit is different from the body. The 
elements, so to speak, of the spirit, are superior to those 
of the soul. The soul is sometimes made to represent the 
whole man, 

'SSoul is form and doth tlie body make." 

It is said that " All the souls of the house of Jacob, were 
seventy souls.^^ Again, in reference to Paul's being ship- 
wrecked, it is said, ^' We were in all, in the ship, two hun- 
dred, three score and sixteen souls." Peter affords us a 
similar example, in his reference to the Ark, " Wherein 
eight souls were saved." By these expressions w^e are to 
understand, that numbers are indicated, as if it were so 
many men of the house of Jacob, so many persons in the 
ship, and eight individuals saved. The spirit of man, in 
the constitution of whose nature, the entire power and 
composition of creation concentrate, enables him to see 
moral beauty and excellence, as well as to com|^ehend 
ideas, in harmony with the laws and the character of God. 
It may be enough for us to know, that there is an ani- 



LECTURE V. 93 

malism in the soul of man, but that there is none in his 
spirit. The spirit of man is the glory of man, and the 
special emanation from God. We may ponder upon this 
subject, but we can never fathom its depths, or scale its 
glorious hights. God has given the spirit to us, and it is 
in accordance with this idea, that God is glorified. He is 
just as much the spirit of our bodies, as He is the spirit 
of the Church. He is also as much the spirit of the wdiole 
Church, as our spirit is the life and light of our own cor- 
poriety. 

After God had created man, and breathed into him, the 
breath — the spirit of life, what did he then? We can not 
place too great a value upon the infinite wisdom and love, 
clearly presented to our understanding and gratitude, in 
God's dealings with our first parents. He honored them 
with his presence — placed them in a glorious habitation, 
havinoj made them a little lower than the ano^els. What 
next? Why, the inspired waiter tells us, that God blessed 
them — made them happy, by bestowing special and divine 
favor upon them. The words blessed and happy, are tan- 
tamount — they convey the same idea, as used here. God 
made Adam and Eve happy, and gave them license to 
assume possession of the earth. And God also said, ''Be 
fruitful ; " that is, God commanded them to increase and 
multiply, in order that the earth might be peopled. God's 
commands are all blessings, and obedience thereto is hap- 
piness to man. 

Thus, gentlemen, for this morning, we terminate, our 
consideration of the last act of God, in the drama of cre- 
ation, since time began. We have spoken of man as he is 
by the constitution of his nature, in the physical, intel- 
lectual, moral and spiritual aspects. However we may dis- 
tribute him, he is the superlative consummation of the 



94 LECTURE V. 

creative labors; and in him we have a sort of microcosm — 
a universe in miniature. No element exists in the universe, 
which does not enter into his constitution.* And the most 
marvelous changes and workings, are continually going 
on, in every human system, whether awake or asleep. 
The living body of man, presents the most complete and 
complicated piece of mechanism, in structure, and yet the 
most harmonious and simple in operation, of any thing in 
the wide world. Inwardly and outwardly, man is won- 
derful indeed. The Psalmist exclaimed to God, "I will 
praise thee, for I dim fearfully and wonderfully made ; mar- 
velous are thy works." The emotion of this inspired 
saint, in the contemplation of his own nature and organ- 
ization, transcended the highest thought of the ablest and 
purest mind. The analysis and study of man, is indeed, 
an important, an interesting and sublime investigation. 
Pope, one of the few great poets, who rhyme and reason 
at the same time, sung : 

Know then thyself, presume not God to scan ; 
The proper study of mankind, is man. 

But unfortunately this does not tell the whole truth, 
though true as far as it goes. For, while there is no sub- 

■^ This statement must be taken in a qualified sense. If Mr. Camp- 
bell means what he seems clearly to say, then the statement will 
scarcely pass for truth. The Science of Chemistry has already 
recorded more than five times as many simple elements in Nature as 
are found in the body of man. Should the statement refer to the 
whole man — Body, Soul and Spirit — then no one can tell whether it 
is true or not. Mr. Campbell's fondness ior generalization led him 
sometimes into doubtful positions, in reference to particulars. His 
mind was so absorbed by the grand conceptions which he had of 
Creation, Providence and Kedemption, that he occasionally over- 
looked the smaller matters which engage the attention of other 
men. . M. 



LECTURE V. 95 

ject of human investigation, which can so properly engage 
our attention, as the study of man, it completely compre- 
hends the consideration and study of God, the Creator 
and Ruler of the universe; thus presenting to our con- 
templation, in one view, man in God and God in man. 

The earth and its tenantry constitute the world, or 
more properly speaking, humanity in the aggregate con- 
stitutes the world; and the contemplation of this aggre- 
gation in the detail, greatly augments the happiness of 
man. We frequently have the term world, applied to the 
earth ; but the world, in Holy Writ, and in the language 
of reason, is not the earth, but it is the population thereof, 
that constitutes the world. And we claim, that if a man 
would enjoy himself perfectly, that is, if he would derive 
all the pleasure possible from the healthy exercise of all 
his faculties, he must possess a complete knowledge of his 
mental and physical, moral and spiritual constitution and 
character, too^ether with his surroundino; circumstances. 
Such knowledge will not only comprehend the whole out- 
ward and inward man, but it will radiate, and lead off the 
inquiring and ever active mind, into all the branches of 
material and social science. All his study, meanwhile, 
must have respect to his social system, and a social sys- 
tem which is but an offshoot from the social element of 
humanity. Hence, from the very constitution of his na- 
ture, man's happiness will always be incomplete, if de- 
prived of society. Study then to know yourselves, re- 
membering all the while, that " the greatest mystery to 
man, is man," and the greatest miracle to man, is man 
made in the image and likeness of God. 

"Man, know thyself! all wisdom centers there." 

(^Bell rings.) 



96 LECTURE VI. 



LECTURE VI. 



GENESIS II. 



Gentlemen : We are informed in the beginning of the 
second chapter of the book of Genesis, that "the heavens 
and earth were finished, and all the host of them." 
Also, that " on the seventh day God ended his work which 
he had made." It appears, therefore, that the creative 
acts extended through six days, and that " God rested on 
the seventh day from all his works." These seven days 
constitute our week. Now, we desire you to concentrate 
your minds upon the phenomenon of weeks. There is 
nothing in nature to suggest it. We know that the moon 
works out the months, and the sun rules the day, while 
for seasons are produced by the variations of the earth, 
revolving upon its axis, as affecting the relative positions 
of the earth to the sun. Nature makes the day, the 
month, and the year ; but what makes the week ? This is 
a question of great importance — a question that staggers 
the boldest of infidels, and the most expert of theorists. 
The subject has developed much ingenious thought, and 
profound reasoning, but we affirm that nothing on earth 
or in heaven, can be assigned as an argument for the 
week, aside from the fact that the heavens and the earth 
Avere created in six days of twenty-four hours each. This 
ordinance of time, depends entirely upon absolute will for 
its origin. The cessation of the creative labors of God 
on the seventh day, gave rise to this division of time; for 
which there is no type in nature. There is a type, or 
some symbolic mark, for every cardinal institution of the 



LECTURE VI. 97 

divine economy, except the week, and tlint has none. 
We therefore designate this, in the category of positive 
institutions, and the fact of its being a positive institution, 
phices the explanation thereof, bej'ond the power of hu- 
man reason. It can not be accounted for by any Egyp- 
tian or other scheme, which has been or may be concocted 
and digested in the human brain. The most careful skep- 
tics have overlooked this, in their inquiries ; and when 
it is propounded to them for an explanation, it brings them 
to a full stop, and they are obliged to acknowledge them- 
selves at a loss to account for this remarkable division of 
time. The creative drama culminated in a week; and, 
while the works of God are commemorated by it, God 
himself commemorates the week as a positive institution. 

Those matters which refer to the division of time into 
weeks, are identified in a prophetic view, and none other 
could comprehend the subject, for it is above and beyond 
the pale of mortal nature. In the writings of Jeremiah, 
reference is made to similar subjects, '' The Lord gave the 
sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon 
and of the stars, for a light by night." You perceive 
nothing is said relative to the institution of the week. 
That remains among the positive ordinances of God, and 
as such, surpasses the comprehension of man. The week 
culminated in the seventh day — at the end of the creation 
of the world — and that being a day of rest for man, is 
commemorative of God's ceasing to create, and the term 
rest is disposed of, on the ground that it is simply a figu- 
rative expression, so far as God is concerned, signifying, 
merely, that he ceased to act at the end of the week, but 
by no means indicates that the Almighty stopped to rest 
—to recover from the exhaustion of labor. 

In the establishment of the week, which was perfect in 



98 LECTURE VI. 

the completion of the creative labor of God, we are not 
to understand by the expression, " God rested on the sev- 
enth day/' that the Creator was tired, or exhausted. The 
term rest, in this case, we repeat, simply conveys the idea 
of cessation from labor ; the work of creation had been 
completed, and by the word rested, we are taught that God 
no longer appeared in his active, or'ginating capacity, but 
that he retired from the sphere of human vision (or con- 
templation), into the quiet of his own eternity. '*' tlast 
thou not known ? Hast thou not heard that the everhist- 
ing God, the Lord, the Creator of the heavens and the 
earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?'' 

Keeping this subject-matter under consideration, we 
invite attention to another remarkable fact, bearing upon 
this interesting question. It is this : Every one of the 
ten commandments begins with the phrase, " Thou shalt'^ 
or " shalt not" do this or that, except the fourth, and that 
begins with, " Remember." This is quite peculiar, and its 
significance is worthy of notice. Why this variation in 
the form of expression, as introduced at this particular 
command ? May we not presume or aflBrm, that it is be- 
cause the x\uthor had in his mind the fact that there is 
one day above all others in importance ? It was of extra- 
ordinary regard, because God had ceased to work on that 
day, and for this reason man is especially commanded to 
" remember^ ^ (always) " the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." 
On that day of days, God terminated the creation of the 
heavens and the earth, and retired into the solitude of his 
own infinity. Out of respect for this great truth, this 
important event, it was meet that man should cease to 
work on the same day, for the purpose of commemorating 
the great termination. 

Our moral laws are established by many eminent prece- 



LECTURE VI. 99 

dents. God commanded his people to follow a glorious 
example. '^ Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy 
work." By this commandment man is as clearly bound to 
labor the full six days as he is to rest throughout the sev- 
enth. We are not aware that any verbal or written dis- 
quisition has ever considered this point in this light. It 
has not entered into the terminology of the system builders, 
all of whom make systems and creeds no larger than their 
own minds. And w^e hold that no man, or organized 
sect of men, can concoct or comprehend a system larger 
than the combined scope of their own minds.^ 

In the fourth verse (Genesis ii), we are told that " these 
are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when 
they were created." This term '' generations" is of fre- 
quent occurrence in the Bible, and conveys different ideas, 
accoriUng to the associations of facts and events in which 
it is found. As used in this connection, for '' the generations 
of the heavens and the earth," we would say, in modern 

■^ If this view of Mr. Campbell be correct, it seems to us that it 
forever settles the question concerning the importance of human 
creeds. If the creed makers can not construct a system larger than 
their own minds, it must be evident to all that their systems will be 
applicable to such persons only as are equal or inferior, in mental 
capacity, to the author or authors of the systems. Consequently, 
superior minds can not be accommodated by these human inven- 
tions. And this being true, we must conclude that in order to meet 
the wants of the immense variety of mind, the number of creeds 
must be very great, unless we can find one that is equal to the re- 
quirements of the greatest as well as the humblest intellect in all 
the world. Keasoning, a priori^ we would expect just such a creed 
from an Author who is infinitely wise^ and from none other. There- 
fore the Bible is demonstrated to be the only creed that is perfectly 
adapted to every creature ; consequently, it is a sufficient rule of 
faith and practice, and an infallible " Lamp to our feet and Light to 
our pathway." M. 



100 LECTURE VI. 

style, the creations of the heavens and the earth. Gener- 
ation signifies now quite a different thing from what it 
did two or three hundred years ago. The phrase here 
which embodies the term ''generations," constitutes a 
summary of what had been done, and reference is here 
made to the arrangement of all things as they w^ere cre- 
ated, and the whole sentence or verse may be regarded as 
a sort of resume, or recapitulatory assertion of the in- 
spired writer. 

''In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the 
heavens." Here the query doubtless arises in your minds 
as to what is the meaning of the term heavens. It is in 
the plural form, and the manner of speech clearly indicates 
degree and number. AYe have the heaven and the earth, 
also the heaven of heavens. Does not Paul speak of 
knowing a man "who was caught up to the third heaven," 
whereby we may understand him as referring to the heaven 
of heavens? 

In physical philosophy, we have a vapor and an atmos- 
phere, wherein all things that live and grow may be said 
to have their being and existence. I do not wonder that 
Egyptian philosophy assumed that water w^as the mother 
of all things. We have strata in the material universe, 
and we have repeated layers or currents of atmosphere, 
leaning upon the surface of the earth. These atmospheres 
are filled with heat, cold and moisture — all varying in 
degree according to circumstances, and as we ascend they 
continue to become more and more rarified, until they fail 
to support life, ^ronauts travel upward, even into the 
clouds, in balloons, and frequently reach an elevation 
where the excessive cold is beyond the endurance of man. 
These atmospheres, resting upon the earth, form a grand 
coveringj and their elements of heat and cold constitute 



LECTURE VI. 101 

them wonderful life preservers, so long as man or other 
animate beings remain in their proper position. Hence 
this theory of '' the heavens" may be illastrated variously, 
because it is in harmony with the teachings of science, 
and true science never conflicts with the teachings of the 
Bible. 

In the fourth verse — the latter part — we have " In the 
day that the Lo7'd God made the earth and the heavens." 
Here we have a peculiar and an absolute name combined. 
In this expression we notice that this is the first time that 
God is mentioned in such a connection. Up to this point 
in the creative history, the expression ''Lord God" is not 
found. The reason is, that the term Lord indicates sove- 
reignty and proprietorship ; hence the term was not pre- 
fixed to the word God while the creation was going on ; 
but after the drama vras completed, the Creator is spoken 
of as ''the Lord God." His sovereignty is manifested in 
God's dispensation and exercise of authority and love, for 
the good of man. And let it be observed that it is in the 
sense of Lord, or Jehovah, that God introduces himself in 
the grand plan of redemption. God is the absolute name 
expressed by Elohim^ and Lord may be denominated the 
peculiar or discriminating title presented in Jehovah, For 
the name " Lord God," as introduced here, we would have 
in the original " Jehovah Elohim." Jehovah, then, in the 
language of the record, is presented as the one proper and 
peculiar name of the Creator and Preserver of the earth 
and the heavens. 

The inspired writers of Holy Writ speak perspicuously 
concerning the existence and sublime character of Jeho- 
vah, from Genesis to Revelations. God said unto Moses, 
''I am the Lord, and I appeared unto Abraham, unto 
Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty ; 



102 LECTURE VII. 

but by ray name of Jehovah was I not known to them." 
The Psalmist, in his complaint, beseeches the Lord, who 
has done wonderful works, and whose name alone is Je- 
hovah, to make men know that he is the Most High over 
all the earth. By the great prophet, God says to the 
world, " I am the Lord, that is my name," and more than 
seven hundred years afterward, the Evangelist continues 
this line of history, saying, ''Verily, verily, before Abra- 
ham was, I am." Thus in a record from the close of the 
creative to the opening of the redemptive period, we con- 
template the grandest designation of Jehovah ever re- 
vealed to mankind. (Bell rings.) 



LECTURE VII. 

Gentlemen : We continue this morning, our remarks 
touching the creation and individuality of man. We can 
not, we think, say too much, with reference to the spirit- 
ual identity of humanity. 

In the seventh verse of the second chapter of Genesis, 
we are told 'Hhat the Lord God formed man of the dust of 
the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of 
life, and man became a living soul." After God had made 
him (in stature), he breathed the breath of life into him, 
as we are informed here. In the original, it is the breath 
of lives; and this rendering, is in consonance with the 
fact, that man possesses a trinity, in his bodily, mental 
and spiritual qualities. This passage may be termed a 
repetition of the preceding acts. The spirit of God may 



LECTURE VII. 103 

be said to have created man, and in this passage it is 
shown of v^^hat particular material man's corporeal pro- 
portions were formed. Elihu says to Job, '^The spirit of 
God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty 
hath given me life." Thus one part of the record is veri- 
fied, and Job accords with the other, and at the same 
time concurs with Elihu, by saying, "I also am formed 
out of clay.'' Indeed, all the hosts of the heavens and 
earth were made by the breath of the Lord's mouth. 

There are other noticeable points in the record as found 
in this book ; and it could not be otherwise, for all could 
not be contained in one sentence, or on one page. Never- 
theless, the creation of man, was perfect "in the 
beo'innino-." Even then, God saw and understood all 
things, from the beginning to the end of time. When 
the Psalmist would praise God for his all-seeing provi- 
dence, he sings, "Thine eyes did see my substance, yet 
being imperfect, and in thy book, all my members were 
w^ritten ; which in continuance were fashioned, when as 
yet there were none of them." Man vfas the end, and 
the crowning glory of creation. He was not created for 
other things ; but all things else were created for him. 

The grand conception of man, existed in the infinite 
mind, from the beginning ; and God's wonderful economy, 
as manifested in the human form, is bej^ond the compre- 
hension of the human understanding. But humanity, in 
its creation and decay, in all its multifarious and suc- 
cessive stages and relations, will continue until it cul- 
minates in the last act of power, essential to the glori- 
fication of humanit3^ There will be a reason for the last 
man, just as much as there was for the first man; and 
there will be just as complete and strong a reason for the 
death of the last man, as for the decease of the first. 



104 LECTURE VII. 

Hence, the time will come as certainly as we now live, 
when the curtain will drop upon the stage of time, and 
terrestrial existence — when time and earth shall cease, 
and eternity begin — when the theater of earth shall be 
taken down, and the glory of God shall permeate the 
entire universe. 

But let us add another remark with reference to the 
distino-uishinfi: features of the ''human form divine.'' 
Some men — and among the number we find men of posi- 
tion and influence — contend that man is nothing but a 
biped : and so is a goose a biped, having body, legs and 
many principles in its locomotive structure, similar to 
some in man ; yet is it not utterly destitute of any of 
those characteristics, that tall within the sphere of de- 
sire or ambition, and that would make it stand out per 
se^ like man ? Man stands pre-eminently at the head 
of the material creation, and is a sort of winding up — a 
grand culmination and conglomeration of all the various 
and multifarious capacities and characteristics of nature. 

It w^ould appear from the substance and manner of the 
record, that man is to be regarded as a wonderful and 
comprehensive combination of the entire universe; so that 
there is nothing above, nothing below us, nothing around 
us, that is not in the human system. He is an epitome 
of the great living volume of nature, whereb}^ we are 
prepared to realize the value of the oracle, that God has 
constituted man a marvelous incorporation of all his other 
works. God only has, and represents the spiritual alone, 
while man possesses the animal and spiritual natures in 



■^ In soiiie respects, man may be considered superior to the angels. 
They are ministering spirits, ministering to them who are the heirs 



LECTURE \I1. 105 

We have nothing, short of the spiritual, beyond the 
scope of human action and comprehension. Man alone, 
is the sum total of natural matter in structure, and the 
earthly power supreme, over the destiny and action, of all 
animate and inanimate nature. He is a comparatively 
small creature, weighing a few score, or a few hundred 
pounds at most; but with all his feebleness of body, he 
can make the earth and all its tenantries, as ministering 
servants to his power and skill. He draws the winged 
lightning from the clouds of the sky, and brings the levi- 
athan from the depths of the ocean. By his ingenuitj^ — 
his physical and intellectual power — he can withstand and 
conquer every natural antagonist that opposes him. He 
can not infringe upon natural law, without suffering the 
penalty, nor can he regulate or disorganize the order of 
natural elements ; but he can adapt himself to them — be- 
ing qualified to live in the zones, at the burning equator, 
at the freezing poles, and very much in the w^ater. He 
can adapt himself to these varieties in the outward cir- 
cumstances of his constitutional personality, and do like- 
wise with reference to his mind. 

Again, and perhaps for the last time in this connection, 
we call your attention to the subject matter of spirit and 
materiality combined. We may thank God that we have 
minds so large, so comprehensive, that the earth and all 
its attributes, can not fill them, and thank him too, because 
there is nothing finite, which can satisfy the infinite ; yet 

of salvation. Angels, then, are the servants of man, in a certain 
quahfied sense. But in what consists- man's superiority? Most 
probably, in his three-fold nature. He has a body, soul and spirit 
and, consequently, unites within himself, the interests of three 
worlds. M, 



106 LECTURE VII. 

as we are, we can only take a very limited view of objects, 
and our powers of comprehension and appreciation, are 
comparatively impotent. No man can comprehend the 
smallest particle of matter, ever discovered by the eye of 
man, aided by the wonderful power of the microscope. 
Matter is as incomprehensible as spirit. How in the name 
of reason — of eternal reason, could man divine, how spirit 
permeated matter — gave being to it — how could it bring 
this vast universe, in all its immensity and perfection of 
life and action, out of absolute nihility? To see, to know 
this, is to possess knowledge far above that of our sphere — 
far above the sphere of terrestrial beings. In what man- 
ner, and by what auxiliaries, every thing could be brought 
out of nothing, is not however the question noAV to be con- 
sidered ; nevertheless there was, and ever more will be, 
that Spirit by whose omniscient and omnipresent potency 
the vast heavens and earth, with all their host were cre- 
ated. And there is not a single particle of matter, not the 
minutest insect, that does not afford unmistakable evidence 
of the power and benevolence of this Spirit, as much as 
does the being, whose mighty stature is measured only by 
the universe and eternity. 

The study of the human form divine, is the chief sub- 
ject of our consideration. In fact, all other studies are or 
should be pursued, for the purpose of giving us, the power 
of properly investigating humanity; for is not man, the 
basis of our sciences? We study the material and spirit- 
ual, the moral and religious natures, for the ostensible pur- 
pose of becoming more fully acquainted with ourselves. 
And in our persons, we have an inexhaustible subject, one 
which we frequently call a microcosm, it being the sum of 
all realities and varieties in nature, from the iron in the 



LECTURE VII. 107 

blood to the power ethereal, to the spirit and the oxygen, 
the indispensable ingredients of life. 

Every thing in man's corporation, is mysterious and 
sublime ; he being the culmination of animation, and a 
grand revelation of God's power, wisdom and goodness, 
and, therefore, the most desirable and lofty theme for the 
meditation of the human mind. We can conceive of noth- 
ing, which does not relate to or enter into, the constitution 
of man ; for he is a universe in himself. Analyze his body, 
and you find there the solids and fluids, the mental and 
physical quality, and there also is the soul — as the animal 
life or center of all sensation and impression. But above 
all these is the Spirit eternal, that grand culmination of 
power, whereby every act and entity in materiality, is di- 
rectly influenced. It is transcendent in its workings — 
we know no power like that of spirit. It is even more 
mighty than the material mechanism with which it is asso- 
ciated. How lofty and sublime, the acts proceeding from 
the spirit — that inconceivable, incomprehensible some- 
thing — that wonderful entity, which by the will, enables 
man to put whole armies, numbering millions of men, in 
motion — array and fight them in the field, convulse soci- 
ety, revolutionize nations! It is the spirit that constitutes 
the glory of man.^ By virtue of the Spirit, man excels 

"^Tlie Bible, which contains the only sound system of Theology, 
contains also the only sound system of Psychology. Theologians 
have given too much attention to Theology, and not enough to Psy- 
chology. The distinction between Soul and Body is obvious, and 
seems to have been well understood by the old Philosophers; but 
the distinction between ^^oul and Spirit, is peculiar to Christian Psy- 
chology, and is that which especially distinguishes the philosophy of 
the religion of Christ. The Scriptures furnish us with the only un- 
mistakable distinction between the Faeuma and the Psijche. Hu- 
man reason could never have suggested the philosophy of the Pneu- 



108 CHAPTER VII. 

every thing — every being that hath the breath of life. He 
can scale the heavens, fathom the seas, drift his mind be- 
yond the milky-way, and with propriety and profit look, 
into the infinite past, and into the infinite -future. Man 
never can be expressed by mortal man. Every where, in 
every thing, we read with wonder and admiration the glo- 
ries of man, and we ponder upon the mystery of his 
creation, which is past finding out. (^Bell rings,) 

ma. This is that part of man which was created in the image of 
Gocl^ and w^hich was lost, or greatly obscured to the eye of human 
vision, by the Fall. And hence, it must now, of necessity, be a mat- 
ter of revelation. Plato taught the irmnortality of the soul, but the 
^^ eternal llfe,^^ conferred upon man, through the Gospel, is a very 
different thing from Plato's immortality. Plato's idea was little 
more than the opposite of immateriality. His Logos^ or Nous., is 
never identical with the New Testament Pneuma. The first is as 
old as Philosophy itself ; the last is found only in Christian Psychol- 
ogy. Immortality, when considered by itself, was understood as well 
by Pagan, as by Christian Philosophers; but imniortality in con- 
junction with Life^ came to our knowledge by Jesus Christ, who 
^'brought life and immortality to light through the G-ospel." 

The distinction between the Psyche and the Pneuma seems to have 
been at first well understood by the Greek Fathers, but was soon 
corrupted by the Platonic philosophy. Gnosticism and semi-Pan- 
theism grew^ out of this corruption. And, in the reaction against 
these errors, the Latin Church rejected altogether the distinction 
between the Psyche ^nd the Pneuma; and so the usual dichotomy of 
man into Body and Soul only, became the prevailing view through- 
out the West. And even now, many Theologians treat the distinc- 
tion between Soul and Spirit, as though it were only a verbal one, 
instead of what it really is, the distinction between Pagan and Chris- 
tian Psychology. ^« 



LECTURE VIII. 109 



LECTURE VIII. 

Gentlemen : It is to be observed, that in the develop- 
ment of the social system, God institutes society ; and 
for this reason among others, we know that God has so- 
ciety in himself. Society had its incipiency, its actual 
existence, originally, in the Divinity itself. God is not, 
and never was, a solitary personality ; but has in himself, 
•duality and plurality ; hence, in the Holy Scriptures, we 
have the three manifestations of God. In the strong lan- 
guage of both the Greek and Roman, as well as of the 
Protestant Churches, God is Father, God is Son, and God 
is the Holy Spirit. God, therefore, never was a solitary 
person, in the annals of the universe ; but always possessed 
society in himself. When he made man in his own image, 
he constituted the three natures of man, and these natures 
are the outward body, the inward soul and the innermost 
spirit. This analysis of man, is based upon a proper com- 
prehension of the Holy Oracles, and is the foundation of 
all education — even scientific. Of course, we do not refer 
to the details of Astronomy, Geology, and other kindred 
sciences, but to the fundamental facts, upon which the 
science of society is based. 

There is a distinction I desire to make this morning. 
We have moral and positive institutions, and I affirm, that 
the institutions of religion, are positive ; every institution, 
that belongs to religion (proper) is positive. Ancient waiters 
on this subject, had them differently divided ; but we 
affirm the positive and moral relations, and that these 
divisions comprehend, every thing, that can enter into re- 
ligion. 

Morality is based purely upon the relation of God to 



110 LECTURE VIII. 

man, and of man to God. The positive came from God 
directly ; it never came to us a priori. Let us suppose, 
for example, that a man is conscious of having sinned 
against God. By what process of reason, could he come 
to the conclusion, that if he killed a lamb, he would ex- 
piate his sin ? '^ What if he should kill a man ; and burn 
his body upon the altar ; would that in the forum of reason, 
mitigate man's offense ? I introduce this to show, that in- 
ferential reasoning, has no starting point from which to 
work out such a conclusion. 

We take this as our back-ground, for all our reasonings ■ 
upon such matters, whether revealed or natural. 

The very word religion, indicates a schism, between 
man and God. We do not propose to enter into a discus- 
sion of the term scJiism this morning ; but the facts upon 
which the relation, between man and God rested, called 
for an offering in expiation of man's offense : and the'con- 
ditions and nature of this offering, must not be dictated 
by the offender, but must be prescribed by the offended. 
God being offended by man's transgression, must be recon- 
ciled, and that not in the modes and tenses of human im- 
pulse or passion ; but in harmony with the thoughts and 

* The idea of Sacrifice lies at the foundation of all religion. And 
this is very conclusive proof that religion itself is of Divine origin, 
for no man could ever have originated the idea of sacrifice. That 
man would have come to the conclusion, a priori^ that the life of an 
innocent victim would propitiate Deity is an absurdity which is only 
equaled by the insanity of infidelity itself. The first thought to a 
mind, unassisted by Revelation, would be that the anger of Deity 
would be kindled at the sight of such a Sacrifice; and consequently, 
it would never have been used as a means of appeasing anger, unless 
done by the authority of some Divine command. Hence, we con- 
clude that God orio;inated it. M. 



LECTURE VIII. Ill 

language of Divinity. Hence we say, that religion is a 
proposition positive, originating with God. We speak of 
it as supernatural; not preternatural, nor natural; but 
supernatural. Then arises the question, what are the 
grand elements of religion? We answer, not fine doctrines, 
or fine points ; or any thing else of that nature ; nor is its 
analysis in harmony with human reason at all. The tran- 
scendent idea of the remedial system, originated above all 
human incipiency. 

No man ever had a new idea, in the strict sense of that 
phrase. He may decompose, or recompose, but never can 
originate, any thing as purely original. Hence, we need a 
positive revelation of relations and ordinances ; and those 
of the Bible, are in two categories, the one moral, founded 
in the nature of things — the other positive, founded in the 
revealed will of God.* 

These terms must be adopted as appropriate, and essen- 
tial, to proper definition and distinction, in the incipiency 
of religious science. When we inquire what are the es- 
sential elements of religion, three ideas present themselves 
at once — the altar, the sacrifice, the priest. These are 
the essential elements, and without this conception, there 
never could have been a remedial system. We have then 
the whole of religion suggested by the altar, the offering, 
the priest. 

The first controversy of which we have any authentic 
record, after the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the 
Garden of Eden, arose betAveen two brothers, and began 
at the altar. How came this controversy ? Abel, we are 
informed, brought, as a sacrifice to the Lord, a lamb, the 

■^Tbe Moral is commsiuded, because it is right; the Positive is 
right, because it is commanded. M. 



112 LECTURE VIII. 

fruit of his toil as a shepherd. Cain brought the fruits 
of his labor, as a tiller of the soil. The one offering was 
an animal, possessing animal life, and was sacrificed for 
the sake of its blood. The other was devoid of animal 
life, or of any susceptibility of life. Now, when the of- 
ferings were presented, one was accepted, the other, re- 
jected. The blood-sacrifice of Abel was accepted ; the 
vegetable sacrifice of Cain was rejected by the Lord. The 
principle of blood is the basis of all acceptable sacrifice, 
no matter whether the altar be of marble or not. We 
look at the lesson intended to be imprinted by this scene, 
upon the reason and conscience of mankind. We look 
upon the blood-sacrifice as the controlling idea of the 
w^hole matter, and are prepared to appreciate the accept- 
ance of one, and the rejection of the other offering. It 
was done visibly, and we see, by the eye of faith, the fire 
descend from heaven, like the lightning's flash, and kindle 
a flame beneath the offering of Abel. The smoke and 
flame ascend up to heaven ; but w^e see Cain standing, cold 
and stern, by his lifeless and bloodless offering, under 
which no fire is kindled, and from which no flame nor 
smoke curls upward toward the heavens. The fire was 
the hand of God, a phrase which, by a figure of speech, 
is applied to almost every divine instrumentality, and sig- 
nified the acceptance of the offering. Cain becomes in- 
censed; he frowns, his heart burns with pride and envy; 
and, forgetful of the natural relation between them, as 
men, as brothers, his resentment kindles against Abel, at 
the manifestation of Divine favor toward him, until he 
actually becomes a fratricide — giving another occasion to 
our Heavenly Father to signalize his hatred of sin, by the 
curse which he proceeds to pronounce against the first 
murderer. We present these facts not only as supposi- 



LECTURE Vlir. 113 

tions of wliat may have been the history of the case, but 
for the sake of j)i*inciple, to sho^Y that since man fell, he 
has had no power, originating in himself, by moral suasion 
or otherwise, of propitiating the divine favor, or of recon- 
ciling himself to God. Hence w^e see the necessity, by 
the teaching of God himself, of blood as an element of all 
oblations, from the foundation of the w^orld. We look 
upon the philosophy of these things, as embodied in the 
doctrine of life for life, and w^e find that blood alone can 
make atonement for the sin of man. It had the powder, 
tj^pical of the great sacrifice for man, Avhich came after 
that. We observe that the principle has been in every 
sacrifice of the Jewish people, and was the reason of the 
crucifixion of our Saviour.^ He could not be annihilated, 
but being bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh, and 
of the same spirit with man, he made himself an offering, 
his divinity being the altar, and his person the ofi'ering. 

We are now in the patriarchal age, and are considering 
cardinal laws ; which involve the destiny of man. We 
have, in this brief history of Cain and Abel the details of 
human pride and envy better developed than any where 
else. A controversy arises between them. The first born 
of the flesh, yielding to passion, under the influence of 
the tempter, slays the first born of the Church, who is 
placed by the Apostle Paul at the head of the roll of the 
saints of eternal renown, and solely because he ofi'ered a 
better sacrifice — more acceptable to God, by faith in his 
promise. 

Doubtless, the instigator of the first murder was the 

^ Perhaps the reason why God demanded blood, is because the 

life 7s in the blood. What he really wants, as an offering, is the 

life. Christ gave his life for ns, but as the life is in the blood, 

" without shedding of blood is no remission." — Heh. ix, 22. M. 

10 



114 LECTUKK Vlir. 

tempter of Eden. lie has two names by which he is re- 
cognized — Devil and Satan. Satan has the Greek article 
before it, hence he is ''the adversary," and not an adver- 
sary. He is the adversary of God and of man, and having 
been reprobated for his instrumentality in the fall of man, 
he now machinates the subversion of the church, in the 
person of its first born son. He can assimilate himself to 
any being he pleases, appearing, ad libitum^ in the proper 
garb of Satan, or shining in all the eloquence of persua- 
sive speech. 

I am reminded here of the story of a certain snake, 
that is snid to charm a bird from the top of the tallest 
oak. I have no reason to doubt it, so far as the credibil- 
ity of my informants is concerned. The charm possessed 
by the reptile probablj^ depends upon the fascinating 
beauty of its colors, or the sparkling brilliancy of its 
eyes, which, b}' a sort of magnetic power, draAVS the beau- 
tiful songster down, down, until he falls into the open 
mouth of the serpent. We know that such power exists 
in nature. In like manner, Satan became the fascinator 
in the Garden of Eden, and bewildered our first parents, 
by his power. They put forth their hand, plucked and ate 
the forbidden fruit, by which came sin, and then shame. 
There can be no shame where there is no guilt. The true 
man always rises above false shame. Disgrace can only 
proceed from sin ; and we have in this truth the sub-basis 
of all moral science. 

We have, in the document before us, J^oung gentlemen, 
a development of the power of motives, of more value in 
the education of the hearts and consciences of men — re- 
vealino; more and better knowledi^re both of God and man — 
than all the studied, logical and rhetorical lectures upon 
the beauty of virtue, and every thing else in the 



LECTUUE IX. 115 

way of spruce and tinseled oratory, ever addressed to 
man. {Bell rings.) 



LECTURE IX. 

It is essential to appreciate all the developments of 
moral and religious history, that we may understand fully 
that we have what are called positive institutions. Some 
old philosophers, in their systems, had the moral positive 
and the moral natural. What they called the worshiping 
and religious conditions, is what we call the moral positive, 
the word positive restricting the word moral. The positive 
is the religious, the moral the social system. Where there 
is no society there can be no morality. Society and mo- 
rality are correlative terms. Religion is communion with 
God and fellowship with him. It is our business to look 
into the materials or proper types of it. 

In the consideration of this subject, we have the terms 
moral positive and moral natural, which we sometimes ab- 
breviate into moral and positive. Religion is a positive 
institution, designed as our immediate system, and for 
this nature, not for the state of nature ; for the natural or 
primitive state is always right — just what it ought to be. 
But we are not in a state of nature. I am aware that our 
lexicographers define nature as the natural order of things ; 
but, as before observed, man is not in the state of nature, 
nor in a supernatural, but rather in a preternatural state. 
Hence we take the natural, preternatural and supernat- 
ural, as the best terms known to us to indicate the three 
conditions of humanity. 

Adam and Eve Avere in the state of nature when created 



116 LECTURE IX. 

by God. They were primarily in the state of nature, 
which is always proper. They could not reasonably as- 
pire to rise above it, in any relation. If man were in a 
state of nature, he would be absolutely perfect. 

We are aware that natural theology (as some have it) 
speaks of man as now in a state of nature. But this is an 
unfortunate error. Man is in a preternatural or unnatu- 
ral state. Adam and Eve only of all the family of man, 
were ever in a natural state — in other words, in the condi- 
tion in which they were created by God. God made the 
natural state of man, sin and its consequences, the preter- 
natural, or unnatural, and the drama of redemption, the 
supernatural. 

Adam and Eve before the fall were natural, after the 
fall, unnatural. Men have no power to return to a state 
of nature, but by grace they can rise to a supernatural 
state. These are the definitions of the true science of 
man, w^hich it is important to remember. 

The word nature comes from nascor (Latin) and is of 
undoubted currency among us, in its true signification. 
Perhaps it would be as w^ell to remark in passing, that 
the study of the dead languages — Greek and Latin, is not 
important or essential to success in the ordinary business 
of life ; but to a proper study and analysis of the terms of 
science or of art, and to the orator in our vernacular, it 
becomes very necessary. 

We have thousands of words from the Greek, Latin, 
and Old Saxon languages, and in order to the proper com- 
prehension and analysis of them, we have a course of studies 
in what we call literature proper. 

But to return to three states of man we remark that as 
he came from the hand of God he was perfect^ — in other 
words in the state of nature. He fell by reason of sin — 



LECTURE IX. 117 

rebellion against God — and came into the preternatural 
state, from which he could onlv extricate himself in one 
way, which may be illustrated by paying a debt. A man 
owes a sum of money. He can only be released from the 
obligation by* a literal payment in full. He lacks one cent 
of tlie amount. He can not, therefore, paj^ the debt, since 
the law does not esteem a debt paid while any part of it is 
w^ithheld for any cause from the obligor. No man can can- 
cel his obligations to God. Hence, we are all bank- 
rupt, and are compelled to fall back upon the remedial 
system. In like manner if we lose a moment of time, we 
can never regain it. It is so much of the means of develop- 
ing man, lost forever. Hence, the importance of employ- 
ino; every moment of time in its leo-itimate uses. 

Man is in a state of alienation from God. The Bible 
treats him as in a preternatural state. Hence, the neces- 
sity of religion. There is a reason underlying the moral 
institution, apparent to all. No principle secures to us 
the enjoyments of social life except the moral. Hence, 
moral science is the moral action and civilization of man. 
The social system can only be enjoyed in morality and 
must conform to it in all its ramifications. 

But why is religion called positive ? Is every thing in 
religion positive ? If so in w^hat sense ? It is positive be- 
cause based on express oracles of God — not upon a 
foundation supported by a pinori^ metaphysical ratiocina- 
tion — -nor is it supported by a posteriori argument ; but it 
is based independently of all these speculations upon a 
positive and explicit revelation of God. And in this man- 
ner only can we sustain what w^e call, the true philosophy 
of man, y>ith reference to his political relations. We find 
it appreciated by the Greeks and Romans, who could not 
get along, in affairs of state without religion. They soon 



118 LECTURE IX. 

discovered that man could not be c-overned without relif^ion. 

o o 

In vain did heathen philosophy represent morality in all 
its beautiful phases. Man's passions were too strong to 
be restrained by these ; consequently all the philosophy of 
Deism and Theism, or natural philosophy as we some times 
call it, failed in restraining the passions, governing the 
motives, or directing the actions of men. In w^hat we 
call religion — as derived from the sacred oracles — are three 
departments — the Prophet, the Priest, the King— which 
became essential to the happiness and development of m^n. 
We speak now, Avith relation to the natural forms of the 
Patriarchal dispensation, considering those of the Jews, as 
typical forms of man in his social system, and in regard 
to the life present and to come. 

There has been a great deal said about the moral and 
positive, as though there was an antagonism between 
them. The moral is generally spoken of as that which 
has its foundation in the reason and nature of things ; 
hence all go for morality, in Deism and Theism, since man, 
as a social being, can enjoy himself in no other way. But 
true religion is entirely beyond the sphere of man's 
thought, unenlightened by a revelation from God. He 
never could have conceived of a spiritual existence.^ 

■^ The distinction made by Mr. Campbell, between Morality and 
Keligion, is a very important one, but has been very generally over- 
looked by both Christian and Infidel philosophers. Theologians 
have either failed to make any distinction at all, or else their state- 
ments have been so much confused as to throw little or no light on 
the subject. And yet, no subject, in all the area of human investi- 
gation, needs a more skillful and thorough analysis. The distinc- 
tion should be made broad and clear. The exact position of each, 
and their relation to each other, should be made to stand out in no 
uncertain light. Christian Science demands this, for it is impossible 



LECTURE IX. 119 

We take the ground without entering into metaphysics, 
that there is not a particle of matter in tlie universe which 
man can understand, even in analysis, by the arbitrary 
terms or names that are used in speaking of it. But it 
may be asked, do not these names or terms give the es- 
sence and powers of the orders and matters of nature? 
Of course, we must answer in the negative. We say, on 

to have a proper appreciation of the Remedial System without 
some correct views concerning the meaning of these two words. 

Religion is a much larger term than Morality. Religion contains 
Morality, but Morality does not contain Religion. In other words, 
m order to be religious, it is necessary to be moral ; but a man may 
be moral, and yet not be religious. We go a step farther, and af- 
firm that it is possible for a man to obey every moral precept in the 
Bibie, and yet be far from being a religious man. Religion is ad- 
dressed to our faith^ Morality to our reason. One rests upon au- 
thority, the other upon the nature of things. One has to do with 
God, the other has to do with the relations of man to man. One is 
for man's spiritual nature, the other for his sodaZ nature. One fits 
man for heaven^ the other fits him for society. Thus we see there is 
a very marked and important difl^erence between Religion and Mo- 
rality. And had this difi'erence been clearly drawn by early writers 
on the subject, many of the errors whi-ch are now found in our Chris- 
tian philosophy might have been avoided. 

T\\Q practical iQQWQS growing out of this subject are very great. 
Thousands of persons think that the Christian religion is nothing 
more than a System of Morals. They seek only to understand the 
teachings of the Bible on the subject of Morality, and imagine that 
this comprehends all that is necessary to know, in order to be saved. 
They forget that piety is an essential element of Religion, without 
which no man can see Cod in peace, and piety rests on positive law. 

No man is under any obligations to God to live a moral life, and 
hence there is no test of fidelity to God in all the area of Morality 
The Pagan, the Jew and the Christian are alike controlled by the 
same motive in this respect. Their moral obligations grow out of 
the nature of things. To illustrate : Children are bound to honor 
their parents, not simply because they are commanded to do so, but 



120 LECTURE IX. 

the other hand, that the Bible, whether historically, pro- 
phetically or didactically considered, is, from Alpha to 
Omega, perfectly adapted to man in his social nature, in 
the three different conditions — first in the family, sec- 
ondly in the national, and thirdly in the universal rela- 
tion. Without these the wants of man could not be met. 
We have, therefore, the three dispensations of religion — 
the Patriarchal, Jewish and Christian. 

We come now to the religion of the first family. Bear 

because it is reasonable that they should do so — the thing is right in 
itself. But whoever obeys the command to be baptized, is- influenced 
by other considerations altogether. He does not act from any sense 
of natural obligation, but solely from a respect for authority. He 
obeys simply because he is commanded to do so, not because he sees 
any reason or fitness in the thing itself It is the response of faith 
to the authority of Christ, and is therefore a much higher act of obe- 
dience than any growing out of moral obligations. Hence we con- 
clude that Morality, when considered alone, is 2^'^^'^'^ selfishness^ while 
the very first act of Eeligion lifts mayi out of self and places him, an 
humble, contrite sinner, at the foot of the Cross. 

Could the world be made to understand and appreciate this view 
of the subject, our modern Scribes and Pharisees — whose religion 
consists only in an outward observance of the moral law — 
would no longer be considered as the true exponents of the Christian 
character " By the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified," is 
an oracle which needs to be more thoroughly comprehended. Men 
are seeking to please God by acts of obedience which rise no higher 
than the selfishness of human nature. But the Bible requires much 
more than this, in order to secure to us the Divine favor. We must 
render to God those acts of obedience which demonstrate our re- 
spect for His holy commandments. Hence the positive laws of Re- 
ligion must be obeyed, as well as the moral; for these are the only 
means of testing our fidelity to God. '^Not by works of righteous- 
ness, which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, 
by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spirit." 
Tit. iii, 5. M. 



LECTURE IX. 121 

in mind that the allegiance of man in his primitive state, 
^vas not based in morality — upon the. good order of his 
family, or any thing of the kind. The question is fre- 
quently asked, Vi'hj God gave to Adam the entire propri- 
etorship of every thing else in Paradise, and restricted 
liim only in the use of the fruit of a single tree. This is 
a fact in religion — a most singular and elementary one. 
Mortal man never could have conceived a more sublime 
charter, than that given by God to Adam. Yet he limited 
him in one single particular. In old times, when a king 
made a grant of land to a subject, the latter was required 
to pay three barlej^corns per acre, and some times he re- 
ceived the land without even so much as one barleycorn, 
upon the sole condition that he would not lay hands on the 
priests. In the first grant spoken of, the payment of 
three barleycorns was simply a recognition of the right 
of the lord paramount, the king; in the second, we have 
an obligation expressive of subordination to an authority, 
which had the right to prescribe conditions or terms, by 
w^hich title or possession of lands was held under the 
sovereign. 

In regard to the tree in Eden, whose fruit was forbidden 
to man, it w^as simply a test of his allegiance, and taught 
him the lesson that he was a dependent being; and from 
these two ideas of dependence and obligation originate all 
the relations of man to God, whether Patriarchal, Jewish 
or Christian. [Bell rings,) 
11 



122 LECTURE X. 

LECTURE X. 

Gentlemen : Having already made some progress in 
the book of Genesis, it may be proper, owing to circum- 
stances known to all {holidays)^ to give a summary of 
what has been passed over, in order to proper preparation 
for the important truths next to be considered. 

It is important, gentlemen, especially in this age, and in 
our country, to have a clear conception of what we call a 
constitution of principles. We live under a constitution ; 
indeed, a constitution is the basis of all stable government. 
The earth and heavens have a physical constitution. We, 
as human beings, have a physical and intellectual, as we 
have a moral and religious constitution. We have, as al- 
ready remarked, constitutions, and institutions under them, 
which may be considered in an individual or in a plural 
point of view. For example, w^e have the Patriarchal dis- 
pensation, with some characteristics pervading alike the 
Adamic, Noachic and Abrahamic periods, in each and all 
of which God is the Covenanter, and the individuals at 
the bead of their respective eras, in their representative 
capacity, are the covenantees. These covenants embody 
the civil conditions under which the covenantees lived, 
during their respective dispensations. By reference to 
the political constitution under which we live, you will find 
that it contains certain elementary doctrinal principles, 
which give character to all the statutory enactments, civil 
or criminal, w^hich constitute the details of our govern- 
ment. I can not discover, however, that with all the 
boasted progress of the present age, in all that appertains 
to civilization, we have originated one new idea — one idea 
not found in the sacred oracles. We have, moreover, in 



LECTURE X. 123 

this volume, the recorded experience of the old world. 
We may see here the rise and fall of Eastern empires and 
kingdoms, and although we see now the causes of these 
great revolutions, we could not have anticipated them by 
any foresight which we possess. We look on the pages 
of history, sacred and profane, and see plainly that there 
were causes, lying back of these convulsions which re- 
sulted in the subversion of old forms and the erection of 
new, but we have not the faculty of knowing the future. 
By looking into this great book of charters, we find 
the names of all the covenantees, to-wit, Adam, Noah and 
Abraham at the beginning of their respective periods, or 
the dispensations known by their names. This is accord- 
ing to the genius of the ages in which they lived. All 
this, and much more of importance, is found in the book 
of Genesis. 

Now, we remark again, that a careful examination of 
the oligarchies and dynasties of the old w^orld, and the 
principles and policies, developed under them, and a care- 
ful comparison of them with similar matters in our own era, 
will show that we have originated no new^ principle, but 
only developed those that lay at the foundation of former 
governments. We have, in other words, only been pro- 
gressing, by way of a better understanding. 

There is a social system, in the nature and essence of 
things. We give them names, according to the political 
notions that men have ; and these are the forms about which 
men contend. But the true fundamental and elementary 
principles, lie beyond and above all these forms, and names 
devised by men. They existed in God — he having society 
in himself. Man too, as we have before remarked, has 
in himself, duality and plurality — he has body, soul and 
spirit. He is then corporate, and the beau-ideal of all cov- 



124 LECTURE X. 

enants is found in man. Hence we find, that all the forms 
and machinery of governments and empires, are based on 
what are called the natural or physical order and condition 
of things. 

The different dispensations are called by the names of 
those, in whom are found the conditions, embodying the 
radical and fundamental principles, upon wdiich they are 
based. The laws of God with man, were perfected in ac- 
cordance with the conditions of life. These are called es- 
sentials. Just so in the social system. There must be a 
constitution embodying organic principles, then laws fixing 
penalties for the violation of these principles, or other- 
wise providing for their enforcement in the details of 
government. In other words, we must have a constitution, 
and under that, institutions, comprehending the political, 
moral, religious, mercantile, etc. 

It is important to know, what enters into the constitu- 
tion of these cardinal circles. We died in consequence of 
violating the first charter. No man could have died had 
the first charter not been broken. It hinged upon one 
single principle. Nothing was to be done to secure it. 
All that was in the institution was negative. Yet man 
violated his charter and lost his birthright. The law was 
positive. It could not have been a priori, and, there- 
fore, must have been positive. 

The first man was created a social being. Out of the 
first, a second was taken, and from these two — Adam and 
Eve — God made a third. Hence, we have three persons in 
society. » On these elementary matters, is based all true 
science of man, intellectual, moral and political. We 
have the sub-basis in these, and if we inquire into them as 
we should do, we will understand the rights and duties of 



LECTURE X. 125 

man, better than by reading a thousand volumes of ^vhat 
is called law — civil, ecclesiastical, etc 

In the Bible, we have a perfect institution, in every de- 
partment — perfect in the first, second and third — adapted 
to man in the various conditions of society. Perfectibility 
or progress, having become the great subject of considera- 
tion, in regard to man, it was necessary to raise him up 
out of the ruin into which he had fallen, and to enable him 
to achieve a status among the princes of the universe, 
throughout the cycles of an unending future. 

The Noachic institution was given after sixteen and a 
half centuries, of the world's antediluvian experience. In 
it we have an engagement, entered into, with the surviving 
head of the human family. In other words, under certain 
conditions, it became expedient for God to say to man, 
that he would not again deluge the earth with water, and 
that time should be divided into seasons — Spring, Summer, 
Autumn, Winter. God gave man these guarantees, in ac- 
cordance with his infinite wisdom and goodness, because if 
he had not done so^ man could not again have gone to 
^York, with any assurance of reaping the fruits of his own 
toil, or with any assurance or confidence of earthly happi- 
ness. But there was a sign of this covenant — a sign both 
artistic and sublime — the beautiful rainbow. All who are 
familiar with the first principles of physical science, un- 
derstand the principle and nature of the rainbow. A 
single drop of water will make a small one, but with a 
showier of rain, we can have a splendid bow^, provided there 
be a dark background for the picture. 

It is contended by some that there was no rainbow before 
the flood, because there was no rain ; and that animal and 
vegetable life were sustained by copious dews, suflBcient 



126 LECTURE X. 

for the purpose; also, that the first rain was the pouring 
out of the deluge by which the human family was des- 
troyed. 

We are startled by the tremendous sound made by the 
discharge of heavy cannon. The bursting forth of vast 
torrents of water, was a phenomenon somewhat similar in 
this respect. There must have been a terrific commotion 
of the earth and heavens, and the consequences are sup- 
posed by some, to be seen in the depression of the poles, 
producing the seasons of the year, by giving to the earth, 
an oblique relation of situation to the sun * 

The Noachic covenant was confirmed by the rainbow ; 
and while it is contended by some that the rainbow could 
not have appeared before the flood, for lack of the ele- 
ments necessary to produce it, there is another theory, 
which has much to commend it. The fact that the rainbow 
was recognized expressly, as some thing unusual, does not 
prove that it did not exist before the flood, nor that God 
created it after the flood, for a sign or memorial of his 
promise never again to drown the earth with water. The 
same is true in regard to the bread and wine used on re- 



^ These statements concerning the question of rain before the flood, 
and tlie probable depression of the poles of tlie earth, at the time of 
the flood, are somewhat speculative, and must be received with con- 
siderable caution. Mr Campbell does not adopt these theories as 
true, but gives them as the views entertained by others. Many 
views, of greater or less plausibility, have been presented on these 
subjects, but there is no substantial scientific basis for any of them. 
They afibrd exercise for the minds of the curious, but in the present 
state of Geological science, it is impossible to tell what is the truth 
in the matter. It is sufiicient to know that there is nothing in the 
Geological record that conflicts with the Mosaic account. M. 



LECTUllE X. 127 

lio-ious occasions. All these thinors existed in nature be- 
fore the flood, and before the birth of Christ, respectively. 
Nothing new was necessarily created^ but old things were 
selected and set apart to signalize and perpetuate the 
events to which they referred. 

It is supposed by some that the earth was originally 
smooth and level — free from the towering mountains, deep 
valleys, dreadful gorges and multitudinous scoria which 
make it like a wrecked ship, broken to pieces by con- 
vulsions, duri^ig which it vomited forth flames and 
volumes of lava, burying cities and plains, and covering 
the face of earth, with apparent deformity. These efi'ects 
are recognized under this theory as the unmistakable evi- 
dences of God's indignation against sin, monumented in 
the broken and disrupted surface of the once beautiful 
earth. ^ 

* The theory presented here is more fanciful than solid; it is fan- 
ciful, because unsustained by any inspired statement; it is not solid, 
because the whole weight of the evidence shows that the internal 
heat of the earth has been an active cause of mountain up'ieavals 
(and consequent depressions), at early periods of the earth's liistory. 
The mountains of Scripture — Arrarat, Horeb and Lebanon — and 
the deep-sunk valle}^ of the Jordan, and sea of ^odom. are probably 
all of this class. Certainly, at an elevation of four thousand feet 
above the sea, whole shoals of fish are found in the rock — put there 
before the flood. Xoris it by any n^eans certain that these upheav- 
als and depressions — yet going on — and volcanic eruptions and 
earthquakes, are to be considered punitive. They are rather conser- 
vative. Had it not been that every square rod of the earth's rock- 
crust has been thus broken up, it is doubtful whether we should 
have had springs or constant streams; and certain it is that the 
stores of base and precious metals, and the vast deposits of coal, 
which are the essential elements of the world's civilization, would 
never have been rendered available to man. It should be observed, 
however, that Mr. Campbell does not receive the theory objected to 



128 LECTURE X. 

God said," '^ and it shall come to pass, when I bring a 
cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the 
cloud, and I will remember my covenant, which is be- 
tween me and you and every living creature of all flesh, 
and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all 
flesh.^' This is the first time we have the w^ord covenant. 
Ik is all important as it occurs in the sixteenth verse (Gen- 
esis ix). He says, ^' the bow^ shall be in the cloud" as a 
sign. We wish to say one w^ord in regard to this. Some 
skeptics say this is no sign at all — that the sun makes it, 
arcordino; to the orio-inal ordinances of nature. This is all 
ver}^ true. A rock is lying on the boundary of survey. 
W e do not make the rock, but find it there. Now, we agree 
that the rock shall be the north east corner of our section 
of land. By doing so, we make the rock a corner stone. It 
was a rock before. We did not create it; w^e simply ap- 
pointerl it to a new use. It is just as reasonable to object to 
the rock as a corner-stone, as it would be to reject the rain- 
bow as a sign of God's covenant with Noah. The sophisti- 
cal arguments of skeptics are easily annihilated, by an ap- 
peal to the facts of Holy Writ. We need not create new 
things, but make use of old ones, for signs and bounda- 
ries. We have, then, the bow in the cloud as the signum^ 
the sign of the covenant between God and Noah, and all 
fleoh. 

One remark further, gentlemen, in regard to this ever- 
lasting covenant. The word everlasting, is not always ab- 
solute, but sometimes relative, in its sii^-nification. Oiilv 
God himself is absolutely everlasting. Creatures may be- 
come so. They were not so in the beginning, and must, 

as true. He refers to it simply for the purpose of giving the Class 
the benefit of all that has been said on the subject. M. 



LECTURE X. 129 

therefore, be made so by God. We have a system of imi- 
versalism, based upon texts in which the word everlasting 
occurs. This is presumption.* God calls the hills ever- 
lasting — the word being merely significant of their per- 
manency. There is a figurative and a literal use of the 
word. There is scarcely any word, that is not sometimes 
used figuratively. Tropes, metaphors, aphorisms, etc., are 
very common in our language. This, however, has a ru- 
dimental and radical meaning. While time and earth last 
this sign shall be. 

In our efforts to understand what we call the systems 
of the difi*erent dispensations of religion, we do not mean 
theories. We know we have speculative systems, but we 
have no use for theories, in relation to these matters, al- 
though they may be necessary in some departments of 
education. We must see all around matters of this sort. 
We may have theories and important ones too, but we 
must have facts and philosophy, and by collecting, collat- 
ing and classifying these, we are enabled to draw the nec- 
essary logical deductions. {Bell rings.) 

^The Universalist is the most inconsistent of all men who make 
any religious pretensions. The word " everlasting," is all right when 
it limits the word life^ but all wrong when it limits the word death. 
When the Bible speaks of God, of heaven, of endless happiness, etc., 
it must be construed as speaking literalhj ; but when it talks about 
the Devil, hell and endless torment, the language used must be al- 
ways regarded as figurative. That is, one side of the Bible means 
what it says, but the other is an ingenious plaj/ iijjon ivords. Such 
trifling with the plainest laws of interpretation can only demonstrate 
the utter ignorance of, or else a fearful moral obliquity in, those who 

M. 



130 LECTURE XI. 



LECTURE XL 



GENESIS XXI. 



Gentlemen : Before proceeding to the consideration of 
some tilings suggested by this chapter, we wish to notice 
a few points, especially important to be remembered, in the 
study of every science. 

We have in every science w^hat we call elements — first 
principles. It is very desirable to proceed in all things 
upon principle; not upon precedent, or a particular class 
of cases. There are great fundamental principles, under- 
lying the whole economy of heaven ; and it is far more im- 
portant, to understand these fundamental principles, or 
constitutional laws, though few in number, than to have a 
thousand facts in our minds or a volume of details. If 
we master the fundamental principles, w^e shall assuredly 
have the details. 

As before remarked, we have three dispensations of re- 
ligion, adapted to the conditions of man — to- wit: the fam- 
ily, national and ecumenical or universal; or the family, 
national or universal institutions. We are living under 
the last of these. The world had had two beginnings — 
one with Adam, and one with Noah. God gave Adam 
and Noah charters — charters of great importance, involv- 
ing duties of high obligation. The first charter guaran- 
teed to man, immortality, so long as he withheld his hand 
from the fruit of a certain tree in the garden of Eden. 
The fruit of that tree, could make an old man young, 
and it was just as easy for God to make an old man 
young, as to make a weak man strong. Man might have 
lived for ten thousand years, or for any period, in the gar- 



LECTURE XI. 131 

den of Eden, without growing old, in the sense we now 
use that phrase. These ideas are of prime importance. 
They are facts — stern realities, and not theories.^ We 
have in these facts — these realities, great material for 
thought. We must have materials before we can manu- 
facture; and we must store our minds with these facts, 
these realities, before we can reason, or draw our corol- 
laries from them. We have already had in the first twen- 
ty chapters of the book of Genesis, the elements of the 
whole volume — the whole Bible; and in the light of im- 
portant definitions, Avhich it is our duty to give you, the 
elementary matters to which we refer, become of much 
greater consequence, than you would at first suppose. 

The Adamic institution was adapted to man in a state 
of perfection. It was brief and simple — merely designed 
to keep man, in his original dependent position, in refer- 
ence to God; thereby securing to him the perfection of his 
original nature. 

There was no religion before the fall of man, either in 
Heaven or Paradise. That w^ould be a startling proposi- 
tion in the pulpit, yet it is irrefutably true. What is the 
meaning of the word religo, from which our word religion 
is derived? Is it not to bind again? Could there be a 
second binding, if there had not been an antecedent boud? 
There w^as no religion in Paradise, Avhile it was the home 
of Adam, for there was no bond broken. Accordingly, 
religion began after the fall of man. In like manner, there 
was no religion in heaven. There was superlative admi- 

^ There is a boldness of utterance in Mr. Campbell's style which 
sometimes has the appearance of speculation; but we do not think 
he can be fairly charged with going beyond the facts in any case. 
This is specially true of him when treating Bible themes. He held 
that theorizing then was a grievous sin. M. 



132 LECTURE XI. 

ration and adoration, but no religion. This brief discus- 
sion of the word religion will save you many blunders and 
much unprofitable thought ; provided you understand how 
it radiates and ramifies throughout all the statutes of mo- 
rality and piety. 

Now, while there was no religion in Paradise, and no ne- 
cessity for it, until there was a bond broken and rights 
forfeited, there was piety S^ What is the meaning of the word 
piety ? It is no more nor less than gratitude. An un- 
grateful being is a monster ; hence Paul teaches us to hate 
ino;ratitude. Ino-ratitude is reli^-ious sin, and sin is no 
more nor less than ingratitude. Paul once said, let chil- 
dren learn to show piety, by gratitude to their parents. 

In consequence of sin, man is now in a preternatural 
state ; not supernatural. The grace of God enables him 
to rise to the supernatural state. To this end Christianity 
is a scheme of reconciliation, and where there is no alien- 
ation, there can be no reconciliation. 

A few lessons of this kind, gentlemen, illuminate the 
darkened recesses of the human understanding — set it 
afloat in a sea of light, and enable it to throw off the 

^ It is not always a safe rule of criticism to follow the primary 
signification of a word. As language changes we attach different 
meanings to the same word. While, what Mr. C. says of Religion may 
be true, when we consider the derivation of the w^ord, it is the busi- 
ness of the critic to inquire after its current use. We use the term 
now in a sense large enough to comprehend the word piety. It is 
now used to designate all acts of worship which grow out of respect 
for the authority of God. Philologically speaking, it may be im- 
proper to give so broad a signification to the term, but this is an- 
other question. So far as the present inquiry is concerned the only 
question to be decided is, what is intended to be represented by the 
word Eeligion, and does the word represent that thing in its popular 
currency? M. 



LECTURE XI. 133 

fetters and manacles of forms and systems, and of a vi- 
cious terminology, which are of no value, in the pulpit or 
elsewhere. 

It is our duty to go down to tlie sub-basis of the whole 
remedial system, and learn thence why man is as he is. 
After the Adamic constitution came that of Noah. The 
first ended with a deluge of water. The second will end 
with a deluge of fire. 

[We omitted to remark, in the proper connection, that 
whether there was rain or a rainbow before the flood, or 
not, there was just as much water then as now — not one 
drop more, not one drop less. It is found in the bowels 
of the earth, in the atmosphere, in the seas, in the brooks, 
wherever God, in his infinite wisdom and goodness, thought 
best to place it, for the uses of man.] 

But we are considerino; those thino-s that underlie reli- 
gious and moral obligation. Every obligation grew out 
of the social compact, maternal and paternal. 

We are now living in the Abrahamic institution, through 
Christ, and in the enjoyment of the blessings of the 
promise that in the seed of Abraham should all the fami- 
lies of earth be blessed. We must study to understand 
the three primary forms of society, before we can become 
adepts in humanity or divinity. We must contemplate 
God in man, man in God, and God in the universe. The 
three great fathers of humanity, as we sometimes call 
them, Adam, Noah and Abraham, had what are generally 
called covenants, containing the conditions of life under 
the three dispensations. All these governments were in- 
stituted by God, and adapted to human society in its dif- 
ferent stages. 

The cheapest and best government on earth would be a 
monarchy, if we had perfect men for kings. We can not 



134 LECTURE XI. 

have such now, as we are all imperfect, and for this very 
reason unwilling to trust each other. We would rebel 
against the government of one great earthly monarch. 
God's government is paternal, therefore, we can trust our 
Father, more than we can trust each other. Hence the 
Patriarchal government is the best for the present state 
of the world, and it is only the sins of men, and the ri- 
valries and competitions of many men, that make our gov- 
ernment tolerable at all. 

When we speak of the Abrahamic age we have three 
governments in one. God made Abraham a promise, or 
covenant, concerning his son — that his son should be su- 
pernaturally born, after he and his wife were past the age 
when such an event was possible, in the order of nature. 
He was one hundred, and his wife ninety years old, in 
round numbers. All this was a type of future transac- 
tions. In accordance with the promise, Isaac was born. 
The aged Sarah doubted if she should be made a mother, 
and from this doubt she laughed. This was the reason 
why her son was called Isaac (Laughter.) The name Isaac 
is a perpetual monument of Sarah's doubt, when God told 
her she should be the mother of millions yet to come. 
Isaac is an everlasting monument of incredulity, upon 
what we call natural principles. Isaac was supernaturally 
born, and therefore a proper type of the great Messiah. 

In the next generation of the seed of Abraham, we 
have the name Jacob — a dishonorable, yet an appropriate 
name. His name was a scathing rebuke of the sin which 
he had committed. He took advantage of his brother 
Esau, and bought his birthright for a mess of pottage. 
It was a great thing in that age of the world to be the 
first born, and for having obtained the honors and emolu- 
ments due to primogeniture, by a fraud upon his brother, 



LECTURE XI. 135 

he was called Jacob — that is a supplanter. To take away 
the odium of his offense, he was brought to repentance, 
and became instant (urgent) in prayer. He wrestled 
with God for a blessing, and so pathetic and persistent 
were his appeals, that God gave him the blessing he de- 
sired, in a manner so condescending and benevolent, as to 
be a perpetual monument of his goodness. After wrest- 
ling with God until he obtained the victory, his name was 
changed to Israel^ which means a prince of God — having 
power and dignity with God. 

The patriarchal institution is very simple, yet it con- 
tains all the elements of the family, national and universal 
forms of society. This covenant given to Abraham, 
blessed him with every spiritual doctrine; hence, it became, 
in its development, the greatest embodiment of piety and 
faith, the world has ev-er seen. 

Paul makes the covenants the basis of the institutions 
of Christianity — conferring all things upon Christians — 
the world, life, death, things present, things to come — 
^'All are yours,'' says the Apostle, "and ye are Christ's 
and Christ is God's.'' The Christian religion is universal — 
comprehending time present, past and eternity. 

{Bell rings) 



136 LECTURE XII. 

LECTURE XII. 



GENESIS XX. 



Gentlemen: Before commencing to propound questions 
upon our past lectures, we will say a few words con- 
cerning the reading of this morning. 

We have the most perfect delineations of character in 
this book; and in them Ave find more or less, of what are 
called the frailties of humanity. The best men who have 
lived in the world, are presented here, with all their im- 
perfections. The imperfections of the men of the Bible, 
are spoken of by the sacred historians, with the same im- 
partiality, with which they present their virtues. There 
are no apologies or extenuations made here, for any im- 
perfections. The historians present things, in the most 
unequivocal and impartial manner; and thus tell the truth, 
the whole truth and nothing but the truth. They do not 
discolor, or color too highly, a single characteristic in the 
life of any man. In this respect the sacred record may 
be considered a kind of type of the future judgment. In 
divine history, every thing is weighed in the eternal bal- 
ances of truth and justice, and all the duties incumbent 
on man, are propounded, with the utmost candor, impar- 
tiality and authority. 

In this chapter, there is an ambiguous expression, in 
regard to Abraham and his wife, which involves consider- 
able difficulty. The term sister, has not always been con- 
fined to those, to whom we now appropriate that term. 
Cousins, were sometimes called sisters, in ancient times. 
The word cousin^ is not found at all in Jewish writings, 
until the Christian Epoch ; hence, they had sisters in the 



LECTURE XII. 137 

first and second degree, etc. Again, a cousin was some- 
times called sister as well as the person, necessarily and 
properly meaning that appellation. Hence, Abraham said 
of Sarah his Avife, " She is my sister." There is in this, 
gentlemen, a manifestation of frailty, in the character of 
Abraham. The virtues of no man ought to extenuate his 
faults. There is no flattery, no partiality, no exaggeration, 
in reference to character in this book. Hence, sainted 
men, are made to stand out in bold relief, on the canvas — 
just as they were. 

Abraham was called the friend of God, because of his 
fitness for the appellation, and for the office it implied. 
God, therefore, entered into covenants with him, having 
reference to himself, and future generations. Neverthe- 
less, the apology which Abraham makes for his conduct, 
is very ambiguous. What he says is very humbly expressed, 
as a necessary precaution to save his hfe, and is clearly 
the result of frailty and weakness. He ought to have 
said boldly that his life was in danger, for the sake of his 
ivife — in the true acceptation of the word. 

[Here the Lecturer proceeded to examine the class in 
reference to the matter of former lectures, and some ex- 
planations being required in regard to the work of creation, 
he occupies the remainder of the hour allotted to the lec- 
ture, on that subject. — Rep.] 

Somic have supposed that the day at that time, did not, 
as now, consist of twenty-four hours — that it was a figura- 
tive expression, as illustrated in the sentence — a thousand 
years is with the Lord as one day — which is indeed a high- 
ly figurative expression, to show that there is no difi"erence 
in point of time, with God. The Jews did not reckon time 
by days of so many hours each ; and for this reason some 

have contended, that the earth's strata furnish the only 
12 



138 LECTUKE XIL 

reliable accounts, of the age of the world. You will find 
a great many skeptics in the world, who make a great deal 
of capital out of the geological structure of the earth ; and 
beino: unable to harmonize this, with the Mosaic account, 
they say it is out of the question to suppose, that all these 
strata, have been created in six consecutive days, of 
twenty -four hours each. But, as before remarked, we 
take the Mosaic account, against the skepticism of geolo- 
gy. We are sorry to have to say, that some of the best men, 
have perplexed themselves with these questions, and have 
in some instances adopted conclusions, far more difficult 
to admit, than the Mosaic history itself. We take the first 
book of the Bible — the book of Genesis — as the key to the 
mysteries of creation, geology to the contrary notwithstand- 
ing. 

Again I remark in reference to the passage, ''And the 
Spirit of God moved upon the face of the Avaters," that it 
is a remarkable fact in the Hebrew^, that the word which 
signifies wind^ also denotes Spirit. We can feel the wind 
and Spirit, without being able to see either, yet we have 
no more doubt of their existence, than we have of the ex- 
istence of soul and body. 

In the present age, we have artificial modes of express- 
ing different degrees of comparison, as the positive, com- 
parative and superhitive ; but in olden times when they 
wislR'd to characterize any thing as being great, they as- 
sociated the word God with it. Hence we have handed 
down to us, the expression Spirit of God — the hills and 
mounti'ins of God, all of which are found in the pentateuch. 
Whenever the word liill is used in this connection, it is used 
as an adjective to express grandeur. 

"And the earth was without form," ''and the Spirit of 
God" (a mighty wind) ''moved upon the face of the waters.^' 



LECTUKE XII. 139 

From these and other expressions of the Mosaic account, 
"sve hold the geological affirmations — that the earth is a 
volume of pages — that these pages or strata, continue ad 
infinitum — that we can by these strata compute the age of 
the earth, as we can that of a tree by its successive annual 
growths — w^e say, we hold these statements to be erro- 
neous, fallacious.* 

■^ As Mr. Campbell frequently refers, in these Lectures, to a seem- 
ing conflict between Geology and the Bible, and as these references 
might lead the reader to erroneous conclusions concerning Mr. Cs 
views upon the subject, we deem it proper to say that Mr. Campbell 
received his education at a lime when Geological science was in its 
infancy — when its aflirmations had to be taken with considerable 
caution. This, doubtless, was one reason why he did not venture 
much upon it. But there was another all-controlling reason which 
influenced him, and this will at once explain in a satisfactory man- 
ner to all unprejudiced minds, why he so summarily disposed of the 
difficulties between the Geological and Mosaic records. He was 
speaking to a class of young men, many of whom knew little or 
nothing about Geology, whose faith in the Christian religion might 
easily have been shaken by an attempt to harmonize the Geological 
and Mosaic accounts, when it must necessarily be done at the ajpar- 
ent expense of the latter. To treat the whole subject of Geology so 
that all the students could understand its teachings, in a course of 
popular lectures not intended specially for such subjects, was simply 
impossible. Hence, it was better to dispose of all questions of this 
kind by confining himself to the plain statements of the Bible. 

That Mr. Campbell did hold many of the teachings of Geology in 
considerable doubt, can net be denied. But in this he was not pe- 
culiar. Many of his distinguished cotemporaries were as slow to 
adopt the testimony of the rocks, as he. And even now, there is 
much division, among great men, on this subject. Nor can we rea' 
sonably expect any very considerable degree of unanimity until Geo- 
logical science becomes much more satisfactory than it now is. It is by 
no means certain that the present affirmations of Geology can be re- 
lied on. True, there can be no doubt concerning ^o??de things that it 
teaches, but when it calls upon us to abandon i\\Qm.0Qi natural inter- 



140 LECTURE XII. 

We learn that in the beginning God created the earth. 
A mighty ^vind — " the Spirit of God" — moved upon the 
formless mass of matter. How long ago that was we know 
not. It was no part of the six days. This was the an- 
tecedent state. It was a state of darkness. God said, 
" Let there be light, and there was light.'^ He says the 
evening and the morning — why not the morning and the 
evening ? — were the first day. This is an important matter 
to geologists. The reason is this, every thing was created 
in a perfect state. The sun, moon and stars w^ere as per- 



pretalions of the word of God, we may well hesitate before taking so 
important a step. 

This is all that Mr. Campbell did, and for this we ought to com- 
mend him, and especially for the good sense he manifested in refus- 
ing to embark on the ocean of speculation, while addressing a class 
ol' young men who were wholly unprepared for it. 

There is no necessary conflict between the Bible and Geology. 
Truth is always in harmony with truth. Hence, truth in the Bible 
is in perfect harmon}^ with truth any where else. We may make a 
conflict between the Bible and Nature by misinterpreting their laws, 
but in such a case the difliculty would not be in the Bible or Nature, 
but in us. We take our imperfect conceptions of these great Books 
as an infallible standard, and not being able to harmonize these con- 
ceptions, we conclude that there is some thing wrong in the Books 
themselves. This is very fallacious reasoning, but it is just the kind 
that passes current among infidels. It is amazing how much self- 
conceit some men have. They do not hesitate to pronounce condem- 
nation on the Bible, and to declare that it is full of inconsistencies, 
when a little reflection and a little humility would teach them that 
the whole trouble is on account of their own imperfections. They 
judge of God's wisdom by their own ignorance; God's power by 
their own weakness ; and God's goodness by their own sinfulness. 
Using such a standard, we do not wonder that they come to conclu- 
sions at variance with the teachings of the Word of God. They 
first decide what is right or true by their own imperfect knowledge 
of things, and then, finding the Bible in conflict with their conclu- 



LECTURE XII. 141 

feet when they began to sail in their respective orbits, as 
the}' are now. They began by the imperative oracle, " Let 
tlieni he,'' and they were. The power was in the word. 
This mighty wind of God (the Spirit), which moved upon 
the face of the waters, gives us a vague idea of a pre- 
existence, which might have been for millions of years, 
for what we know, and how apropos is the happy strain of 
the ancient bard just here : 

'^ Ante mare et terras et, quod tegit omnia, coelum 
Unus erat toto Xatiir^e vultus in orbe, 
Queni dixere Chaos, rudis indigestaque moles. 
Nee quicquam, nisi pondas iners, congestaque eodem 
Xon bene junctariim discordia semina rerum. 

sions, they reject it as unworthy their confidence and respect. Such 
is the manner of infidels in their inquiries after truth. 

But another fact in this connection is worthy of remark. When 
there is a seeming conflict oetween the Bible and any Science, infidel- 
ity has always taken the side of the Science^ and against the Bible. 
Why is tliis ? Is it because there is more evidence for the truth of the 
Science tlian for the Bible ? We think not. The reason grows out 
of the facts already stated concerning the method of investigation 
employed by the infidel. 

Geology has furnished a rich field for these objectors to the Mo- 
saic record to display their peculiar method of reasoning in. There 
is ample room here for the most latitudinous views. Consequently, 
this science has been used as the most effective means that infidelity 
could bring against the truth of the Bible. And it ought not to be 
a matter of surprise to any one, if we find such men as Mr. Camp- 
bell warning the rising generations against the seductive influence 
of that reasoning which forces the Bible to accept as infallibly true 
the imperfect deductions of Geology. And, when we see such amanas 
Agassiz running after his scientific hobbies until they lead him into 
an open conflict with the Bible, we should be slow to condemn Mr. 
Campbell for sustaining the Bible against all the deductions of hu^ 
man reason, drawn from improper conceptions of scientific truth. 

M. 



142 LECTUllE Xil. 

Nullus adhuc niundo praobebat lumina Titan, 
Nee nova crescendo reparabat cornua Phoebe, 
Nee cireumfiiso pendebat in aere Tellus 
Ponderibus librata suis; nee braehia longo 
Margine terrarum porrexerat Amphitrite; 
Quaque fuit tellus, illic et pontus et aer. 
Sic erat instabilis tellus, innabilis unda, 
Lucis egens aer: nulli sua forma manebat, 
Obstabatque aliis aliud, quia corpore in uno 
Frigida pugnabant calidis, humentia siccis, 
MoUia cum duris, sine pondere habentia pondus."* 

At the close of creation every thing existed in a state 
of absolute perfection — all that enters into animal or veg- 
etable life. Some creatures were made for the air, some 
for the water, and some for both elements. 

It is curious to observe the approximations of animal 
and vegetable life. For example, the grape and pea-vines 
appear to reach forth their hands, as if feeling for sup- 
port. No one at all familiar with horticulture can fail to 
observe how promptly, at the proper season, the tendrils 
of these and other kindred plants lay hold on whatever 
touches them ; indicating a sort of progress of instinct 
which approximates, in its highest development, the rea- 
son of man himself. (^Bell rings,) 

* This quotation is from Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book 1, 5-20. 
The reader can not fail to see a striking resemblance between 
this language and that used by Moses. Ovid's whole description of 
the Creation so closely resembles the Mosaic account, in many par- 
ticulars, that it is difficult to believe he did not have a copy of the 
Book of Genesis before him, or else some very truthful tradition of 
it. M. 



LECTURE xm. 143 



LECTURE XIII. 

GENESIS XXIII. 

Gentlemex : We find in the development of the char- 
acters of this book, that the patriarch Abraham stands at 
the head of the roll of the great men of the Bible, and 
indeed, we may add, of human history. His name was 
originally Abram, and was subsequently changed to Abra- 
ham. His wife's name was first Sarai, afterward converted 
into Sarah. These are singular facts in the history of 
any individual. We can now, by a special act of the 
legislature, have a name changed — a very important ex- 
ercise of power, inasmuch as the condition of empires 
and the transmission of vast estates are greatly affected 
by names. 

In the Bible, the changing of the name Jacob to Israel, of 
Abram to Abraham, and others in the same category, is al- 
ways intended to be monumental of some important event. 
It is made a matter of record, as commemorative of some 
signal interposition in the ordinary course of events, for 
the purpose of advancing the wise and philanthropic pur- 
poses of the great Ruler of heaven and earth. The change 
in Abram's name was indicative of the fact that from be- 
ing a father, and a great father, too, he Avas to become the 
father of multitudes innumerable — not merely in what is 
called one direct line, for in Abraham were other nations 
beside the Jewish people. He is a representative man, in 
one sense of that word, of both Jew and Gentile. Espe- 
cially was this the case in the day of circumcision, when 
it so elevated its subjects that a peculiar constitution was 
ascribed to them, and all others were treated by them as 



144 LECTURE XIII., 

barbarians. Hence circumcision and uncircumcision be- 
came distinctive appellations of the Jew and Gentile ; and 
in the writings of the Apostle Paul we read much of the 
circumcision and the uncircumcision. 

We look upon these things as peculiar and important. 
They never could have been instituted humanly, and inde- 
pendently of supernatural interposition. They afford 
monumental and internal evidences, which combine with 
otliors, in the full establishment and perfect assurance 
of faith. 

The covenants of Adam, Noah and Abraham, are what 
we call constitutions. They are spoken of as sovereign. 
This word has been greatly hackneyed and abused — until 
we have now a definition of a definition. The word sove- 
reign, meant originally, what we call an absolute poten- 
tate — absolute as the law. Hence originated, autocracy 
— the hia'h-handed government of antiquity, where the great 
head of the state, by the inheritance of authority and prop- 
erty, became possessed of absolute power. 

You will find, gentlemen, in reading ancient history 
these different forms of power or government, revealing 
the foundations of the Russian Autocracy. Autocrats are 
necessarily arbitrary rulers, whose decrees whether right 
or wrong, are implicitly obeyed, by servile subjects. 

The Church in its various organizations, has gone far- 
ther into some of these principles of government, than 
others. Autocrats in church or state rise by degrees, giv- 
ing cause to reformations, revolutions, etc. Reforms in 
civil governments, have been greatly promoted by what 
we call protestanism. From protest comes the word pro- 
test-ant, now pronouncedjt^ro^estant. Any man who would 
stand up in old times, and protest against the oppressions 
of government, civil or ecclesiastical, had a great deal of 



LECTURE xiri. 145 

passion, or a great deal of principle. In process of time, 
however, rebellious dissenters impressed upon the human 
mind, the ideas of independence and of constitutional liber- 
ty, and these continued to work, until monarchies became 
more or less limited — an occasional sacrifice of preroga- 
tive becoming necessary to the salvation of the remainder 
— and this state of things has continued, until we have the 
British Monarchy, while retaining its name, possessed of 
no more power, than the Executive Magistracy of our own 
Kepublican Government. 

We live now in the evening of the nineteenth century 
— standing upon the giant shoulders of the great men of 
Pagandom and Romandom ; and with a government rest- 
ing upon these Herculean columns, we occupy a position, 
in art, science and literature, transcendently paramount to 
that attained or enjoyed, by any people or nation, that has 
ever figured, in the grand drama of political or religious 
history. Probably, in our zeal to get as far as possible, 
away from the domain of despotism, we have gone too far, 
and got the other side of perpendicularity. If such be 
the case, we trust that time in its revolutions, wall correct 
our mistakes peacefully, regulate our actions, and circum- 
scribe our moral and intellectual wanderings. 

The failure to understand the primary principles of gov- 
ernment, in their relation to the constitution of man, has 
led many persons having an ideal sense of liberty into 
skepticism, and deprived them of the pleasure and happi- 
ness, consequent upon a due appreciation of the basis 
of society, as revealed in the Old Testament Scriptures. 

Such mistakes have caused tremendous commotions in 
nations, before they would rectify their errors. 

Revolutions in various forms of government have grown 

out of a few abstract ideas, and when we trace these back 
13 



146 LECTURE XIII. 

to their origin, we often find that the violation of a single 
divine law, in the heart of one man, has involved whole 
continents in bloody wars and made the earth an acel- 
dama. 

It is very important then, young gentlemen, that every 
man should understand the systems of government, from 
which all forms of society radiate. To understand these 
systems gives us the most perfect liberty of thought, which 
is one of the essential privileges to be secured by human 
government. 

Freedom of thought, and freedom of action, within the 
prescribed area of rational and responsible beings, are the 
zenith of all the aspirations of the human heart. 

When we look into the analytical system of any gov- 
ernment, worthy of the name, we discover three radical 
ideas permeating the whole structure, viz : The legisla- 
tive, judicial and executive. The legislative department 
of government is the source and fountain of law^, the ju- 
dicial interprets and gives application to law, and the ex- 
ecutive enforces law. These ideas are not to be considered 
as absolute, but are suggested by the necessities of human 
nature, for the control of human action, the restraint of 
passion, and the subjection of man to the requirements of 
religion, in his intercourse with society — the religious ele- 
ment entering largely into all ideas of stable and rational 
government. 

It would be well for mankind if lawgivers would more 
frequently consult the divine wisdom, judges oftener em- 
ulate divine justice, and rulers remember mercy, while 
preserving the dignity of government and exacting the 
penalties due to the violated rights of individuals or com- 
munities. 



LECTURE XIII. 147 

Beyond these main ideas of government — legislative, 
judicial and executive — we presume to think, there is no 
improvement possible. The only necessities of govern- 
ment are a proper application and execution of these fun- 
damental principles. Revolutions and civil commotions 
originate from the neglect of the proper observance of 
these prime elements of government, beginning ^vith in- 
dividuals, and finally pervading whole communities. 

Alexander Pope, justly famous for his beautiful writ- 
ings, speaking of human governments, says : 

" That which is best administered is best." 

But this is a mistake. We presume, the beauty of the ex- 
pression has doubtless led some persons to adopt its phi- 
losophy, and to conduct themselves improperly, in refer- 
ence to the duties and obligations which grow out of the 
relation of the ruler and the subject, when properly reg- 
ulated by law. 

In conclusion, young gentlemen, I would remark that it 
has been frequently observed that whenever and wherever 
the Bible has been read, w^hether in synagogues or public 
assemblages of the people, and read, too, without author- 
ized or unauthorized interpretation, it has done more to 
civilize and humanize society than all the lectures ever de- 
livered, or what is called moral science, as taught by the 
Greeks and Romans. 

This result is doubtless due to the unquestionable au- 
thority of the Bible. Our nature never was, never will 
be, nor can it be in the reason and nature of things, suc- 
cessfully ruled, otherwise than in accordance with the idea 
of one supreme or absolute head. 

This principle may exist under a variety of forms or 



148 LECTURE XIV. 

names ; and every federal compact, void of this important 
element, is no government, in the true sense of the word, 
and must fail to benefit a people or regulate their affairs 
successfully. {Bell rings.) 



LECTURE XIV. 

Genesis xxii. 

« 

Gentlemen : It is not only my particular province to 
make remarks upon the orthoepy of this book, as embo- 
died in the English language, but we frequently do so, 
for the benefit of certain young gentlemen w^ho never 
study the orthoepy of our language, unless they are con- 
strained to do so. 

Gentlemen, we say emphatically to you all, that if you 
wish to bring yourselves honorably before your fellow-men, 
study and appreciate that greatest of all passports to 
public favor and usefulness, elocution. I do not mean the 
highly artistic character of elocution, but the true art of 
reading and speaking correctly. To memorize a fine 
speech, and then to pronounce with proper emphasis and 
cadence, every period of it, is very good practice. But, 
after all this is done, unless we study and apply the prin- 
ciples of elocution in all our reading and speaking, our 
eiforts at oratory will lack the genius, the imagination and 
the marvelous unfolding of the inner life, which charac- 
terizes and renders extemporaneous speaking so accepta- 
ble and influential with the people.^ 

^ No man was better qualified to give instruction on the subject 
of extemporaneous speaking than Mr. Campbell. He himself was 



LECTURE XIV. 149 

It will not do to read such a passage of Scripture as 
that before us this morning (or indeed any other), with a 
dead, cold, monotony. Such reading is absolutely intoler- 
able, and utterly fails to impress the auditor with the true 
meaning thereof, and obscures, rather than develops, the 
picture drawn by the Spirit's pencil, in which is portrayed 
the grandest scene of the noble life of the grandest man 
in universal history. 

It ia a trite but true saying, that every thing worth doing, 
is worth doing well; and we again commend to you all, if 
you desire to figure successfully before the public, to study 
the art and mystery of reading well, and speaking well. 
The certificate for fine reading in a European college, is 
equivalent to the degree of A. M. 

We will now look into the lesson of this morning. The 
word ^' tempt" requires some attention. To make God 
himself the tempter, would be a curious proceeding, when 
the Devil alone is the real tempter of mankind. Temp- 
tation came through the Devil. This is a faulty translation 
of the original word. It should read, God did try Abra- 
ham. And what was the point of trial? It certainly was 
not a trial which had no significance. The sequel will tell 
us. God said to Abraham, " Take now thy son — thine 
only son — '"' was ever a sentence, more replete with an- 
guish, through the channel of love ? It was a splendid 
climax! First, ^'Take now thy son-—" then, "thine only 
son — ," '*him whom thou lovest." What a trial was this ! 
He was commanded to take a son — an only son — the son 
of his old age — the son of promise — the idol of a doting 
ftither's heart, and offer him for a liirnt o9"ering. Of all 

a living example of the highest type of this kind of speaking. In 
.all the elements that constitute the true orator, he was not excelled 
by any man of his age. M. 



150 LECTURE XIV. 

offerings this was the most terrific. It was not a cold off- 
ering — but an oflfering to be singed — scorched — consumed 
by fire. We have already seen the signal manifestation 
of God's presence and favor, at the first burnt offering, as 
illustrated at the sacrifices offered by Cain and Abel. 
That of the first remained unharmed, while that of the 
latter, was consumed to ashes, by fire from heaven — the 
symbol of the divine acceptance. Fire was the hand of 
God, in receiving the sacrifices of the Jews. 

The word '' tempt " I presume you all understand now, 
to mean try. The great point of trial in this case was not 
Abraham's honor, or his public philanthrophy, or other 
virtue which commands the applause of men. It was a 
trial of Abraham's faith. Every thing was specific. 
" Take now thy son — thine only son, Isaac, whom thou 
lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah, and offer him 
there for a burnt offering, upon one of the mountains, 
which I Avill tell thee of." How many distinct elements, 
this oracle contains ! Yet, Abraham carries out the di- 
vine command, to the very letter. He utters nut a single 
complaint, remonstrance, nor argument — asks no questions 
why this or that is as it is, but submissive in all things, 
the divine requisition is met in every particular — com- 
pletely^ fulfilled. 

He rose up early in the morning, took two of his young 
men (some of his servrnts I presume), to carry the wood 
to the hill top, where the fire was to be made. Observe 
the time and place, both of which have a peculiar signifi- 
cance. It was upon a mount a kind of elevated table land, 
where the offering was to be presented, and the third day 
is appointed as the time ; not the first, nor the second, but 
the third day. Upon the third day, Abraham lifted up his 
eyes, and saw the prescribed place. Just here, gentleiiien, 



LECTURE XIV. 151 

you will see there is a provision made for contingencies ; 
which though readily suggested, is often passed over with- 
out attention. He said to his young men, ''Abide ye here 
with the ass, and I and the lad will go yonder and wor- 
ship, and come again to you. 

It seems that for some reason, Abraham did not wish 
any spectators of the scene, as if to make it still more 
solemn, and possibly for fear of interference. Observe 
too, there is no one now to carry the wood but his son, 
Isaac. It was a strange spectacle — the offering, carrj^ing 
the wood that was to consume himself Do you recollect 
any thing in the Xew Testament, that is typified in this 
solemn transaction? It is a picture of our Saviour car- 
rying the cross upon which he was to be crucified, up the 
hill of Calvary. Isaac had to carry the w^ood to the sum- 
mit of the hill, for all great events in olden times, con- 
nected with the divine government, occurred on hills or 
mounts, when possible. It was simply w^iat w^e call a 
hill — an elevated portion of land. History has in some 
instances, confused the minds of men, by the use of the 
w^ords mount and mountain, applying them indiscrimi- 
nately, to towering mountains and hills, or comparatively 
slight elevations. Mounts Sinai and Calvary, were simply 
hills — elevated portions of land, which did not rise to the 
dignity, of our conception of mountains, at all. 

Gentlemen, there is another coincidence here, connected 
wdth the third daj", on which the offering was consum- 
mated. The very remarkable resurrection of the Messiah 
was on the third day, after his crucifixion; w^hich is sym- 
bolized in this case. 

After lifting up his eyes, and seeing the place afar off 
he o-ives orders to his vounsf men, and takes Isaac to the 
place appointed. He does not tell him what part he is to 



152 LECTURE XIV. 

act in the solemn scene, for Isaac said, '^Behold the fire and 
wood, but where is the himb for a burnt offering?" This 
shows that Isaac was entirely ignorant of the fact, that 
he himself was to be the lamb. Abraham replied, ''.My 
son ! God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering." 
He spoke just as he felt. He did not realize, that this 
was to be a trial of his faith. It was to him a solemn re- 
ality. He proceeds to laj^ his son, passively upon the altar. 
It is well to observe, that there is no violation of an oracle 
or law in this case. It might be supposed that as Isaac 
was young — in the flush and vigor of early manhood — 
prompted by the instinct of self-preservation, he would 
have struggled to prevent the sacrifice. But so far from 
it, his conduct and Abraham's too, conspire to present a 
beautiful figure of a free-will offering. Isaac gave himself 
up to his fiither, just as Messiah gave himself up to his ac- 
cusers. Abraham lays his only — his beloved son, upon 
the altar — even takes the knife into his hand and raises it 
to strike the fatal blow, when the exclamation, Abraham! 
Abraham! — twice repeated, suspends the stroke. The 
double cry attests the depth of feeling from Avhich it orig- 
inated. A moment more and it had been too late. The 
knife in his hand — his hand is raised, his son lies bound upon 
the alt:u*, when the cry — Abi'aliam ! Abraham ! falls upon 
his ear, and may we not say upon his heart too — as the 
sweetest eloquence. It was an angel's voice, calling to 
him from heaven. 

NovV, what was done to consummate the matter? for, 
surely this is not to be a mere mockery. There must be 
an offering — a substitute. It would not accord with the 
divine cliai'acter, to brino- Abraham awav from home, 
tlirougli ail this pi*eparation, as a mere experiment. Ac- 
cordingly there was a ram caught in a thicket, and Abra- 



LECTURE XIV. 153 

ham seeing, took it and offered it as a substitute for his 
son. 

In honor and memory, of this capital combination of sin 
offering and divine interposition, the place of offering was 
called by Abraham, Jehovah Jirah. There is another fact 
presented in this transaction, worthy of attention ; because 
it shows the divine estimateof a voluntary submission to his 
will. We learn here, that the angel of the Lord called to 
Abraham a "second time," and proceeds to announce the 
divine purpose, in that magnificent oracle, which culmi- 
nates in the assurance that in his seed "shall all the 
nations of the earth be blessed," and why ? '-'Because thou 
hast obeyed my voiee^ 

Now, what is there in this whole matter, of such deep 
interest to the whole human race ? We are all interested, 
gentlemen, for according to the promise, all the families 
of earth, are blessed in the seed of Abraham. 

By the instrumentality of the first Adam, came sin into 
the world, and by the second Adam (Christ) virtue came 
into the Avorld. 

There is such a thing as vicarious sufi'ering, making 
one suffer in place of another. Thus the Lord provided a 
sacrifice in this case, acceptable to himself and at the same 
time, nothing had to be compromised. Now there are cer- 
tain divines — philosophers — who suppose all this was a 
mere formality, indicating what might be supposed to be 
more appropriate. But it is not so. It was absolutely 
essential to the safety of the universe, that sin should be 
punished, by nothing short of death — hence the proverb 
in Israel, "The wages of sin is death." 

Old men and young men, are prone in these latter days, 
to speak dogmatically and afiirmatively, of what is called 
the propriety of the Scriptures. The pulpit and the press, 



154 LECTURE XIV. 

have lost much of their original influence and respect, by 
attempting to bring every thing, no matter how solemn, 
or mysterious, down to the comprehension of every body.* 
This has been carried to such an excess, that skeptics and 
infidels have been strengthened in their opinions, by inter- 
preting and applying, as types and shadows — the stern- 
est realities and facts. There are, gentlemen, what we call 
essential matters, entering into the constituency of the 
grand idea of sacrifice, so as to make it acceptable, and in 
harmony with the wants of society. 

The unbounded philanthropy, the unequaled generosity 
of the great Author of the universe, is clearly shown in 
his promise to Abraham, when he said, ''In blessing I 
will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed 
as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon 
the sea shore ; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his 
enemies.'^ In other words, the Lord promised to make his 
posterity innumerable. 

The history, and epochs of the history, of the Jewish 
people, was greatly characterized by miracles. I have 
never been approached by the skeptic and free-thinker, 
upon the subject of the promises of Christianity, that he 
has not been confounded by that argument. They will 
readily admit that a miracle is beyond the power of human 
beings, unaided by the Omnipotent, but they are at a loss 
what to say or do, when asked to prove that the oracles 
and prophecies of the Bible are unworthy of the Omnis- 
cient One, or of the respect and confidence of man, by 

^ There are some things in Christianity far above the comprehen- 
sion of mortals. And we only make ourselves ridiculous and detract 
from the character of the religion we profess, when we attempt to 
explain thfm. This, however, is true only of the philosophy o\ 
Chiristianitv, not of its duties. M. 



LLCTUKE XV. 155 

using all the political and pliiloso{)hical ^visdom andkno\Yl- 
edge of the nineteenth century, in order to predict the 
condition of any state or nation one hundred, fifty, or even 
ten years hence. They may study the multitudinous 
phases, changes and revolutions of all past ages, acquire 
all knowledge of the present and of the future, within 
their reach, and they are wholly unable to predict, with 
any accuracy, the condition or fate of their own or of any 
other nation, fifty, or even five, years in the future. 

IIoAv pitiably does such blindness, such weakness, com- 
pare with the divine wisdom and power displayed in the 
miraculous prophecies of the Old Testament, many of 
which have come to pass, in the exact fulfillment of even 
their minute details, as given in Holy Writ. {Bell rings) 



LECTURE XV. 

Genesis xxyii. 

[The Class read the 27th Chapter of Genesis, but in- 
stead of remarking upon it, as usual, Mr. Campbell pro- 
ceeded to read and answer certain questions handed in by 
members of the Class, and closed the lecture wdth some 
general observations upon the book of Genesis. — Rep.] 

Mr. Campbell reads the first question : ''Why did not 
God before repent that he had created man, since he 
foreknew that he w^ould be wicked ?" He remarked : This 
is a very proper Cjuestion, and one which has often been 
propounded, by the wisest men. It is presented in various 
forms, and always based on Genesis vi, 7. From another 



156 LECTURE XV. 

source we have the following : " Why did God create man 
at all, when he must have foreknown that he would repent 
of his action V 

All the difficulty, gentlemen, groAvs out of the word re- 
pent. The question proposed has been presented time and 
again, by our most learned theologians, and admits of but 
one solution. 

We have figures in rhetoric of the effect for the cause, 
and the cause for the effect. It is a metonymic figure. A 
figurative expression is never to be subjected to a literal 
interpretation. Now that God could repent at all, in the 
ordinary acceptation of the term, is out of the question 
altogether, if for no other reason, because He could not 
do wrong. Hence we reject entirely the literal import of 
the w^ord. The expression is a figurative one. This is 
the very language of poetry, occurring, too, in the best 
style of history. 

There is a law of literature prohibiting the excessive use 
of tropes. We say of a composition, it is too tropical. 
There is a vast deal of that kind of writing in the Bible — 
I mean figurative writing ; and this expression, " it re- 
pented the Lord that he had made man on the earth,'^ may 
be called a figurative exaggeration. In our daily par- 
lance, we frequently observe the literal and figurative use 
of the same word. We use words in their true import, as 
far as we can, and it is a law, that when matters of fact 
are presented we should, as far as possible, use ^vords in 
their common acceptation. It is also a fixed principle, in 
the interpretation of laws, historical statements, etc., that 
words must be taken in their established signification. But 
in poetry and prophecy we have what we call rhetorical 
license. 

We sometimes hear persons who never heard a line of 



LECTURE XV. 157 

poetry, or studied a rule of rhetoric, spealcing the most 
admirable rhetoric, a fact which results from what we call 
a paucity of Avords. They have to take an image of 
things — paint a word picture — because they have not lan- 
guage in which to express their conceptions of them lit- 
erally. 

The whole subject of metaphorical presentation is with- 
out fixed laws, growing out of previously established rhe- 
torical rules. Rhetoric originated and grew^ up from the 
necessities of language. It does not initiate, but only in- 
terprets what has already obtained currency. 

Now, the w^ord repent, when used in respect to God, 
only show^s an appearance to man. God was only about 
to undo what was done contrary to his will. He was 
about to change his course of procedure, because of inci- 
dents transpiring in the history of man. The metaphori- 
cal use of the word here may be interpreted by facts, as 
they transpired subsequently. He had determined to 
punish, or rather to drown, the world. Now, this is an- 
other figurative expression. The earth was not literally 
destroyed, although such was the language used in an- 
other place. He only changed his course of procedure, 
and visited the iniquity of man upon himself, for what he 
had done before the change. God's repentance, then, as 
the word is used here, w^as only in appearance, and not in 
fact. A man may commence to build a house of a certain 
material, and when he has progressed to some extent, he 
sees that he could have done better, changes his plan, and 
begins again. Now, this is repentance in thesense of the 
word as used in Genesis vi, 7. God, doubtless, created the 
earth in all the imagery of beauty, but changes his plan, 
by a decree that produces the efi'ect proposed, and at his 
behest the heavens pour out torrents of rain, and the 



158 LECTUKE XV. 

earth vomits forth a flood of waters, and all is changed — 
all is repented, God will punish insults to his authority 
and majesty, now and hereafter. 

The idea that God could be sorry and repent, as men re- 
pent for having done wrong, is simply preposterous. It 
could not be. It is, therefore, a figurative expression — an 
appearance for a reality, and we desire that you should so 
remember. 

" Metonomy does new names impose, 

And things by things, a new relation shows." 

We have, gentlemen, in the book of Genesis, a very 
long period of history. It contains twenty-three hundred 
and sixty-nine years of the world's history. It is the most 
eminently historical of all the books of Moses. Exodus 
gives us an account of the departure of the children of 
Israel from Egypt ; but the three books of Leviticus, 
Numbers and Deuteronomy are merely didactical, and ex- 
planatory of the institutions which God had established. 
In the Pentateuch we have all the history extant of the 
first twenty-five hundred years of the earth's existence. 
Four hundred years only intervened between the prophetic 
age and the coming of Messiah. This book gives all that 
pertains to the Jewish religion, and, as before remarked, 
it was necessary that there should be three distinct forms 
of religion, so far as outward profession was concerned — 
to-wit : the personal, the family, and the national. 

The claims of religion, gentlemen, are paramount to all 
others, inasmuch as they are divine. The obligations of 
religion are continuous through life, as they are designed 
to bind man to God. The duties of religion apart from 
the authority which demands their performance, are 
prompted by gratitude, for favors multiplied beyond our 
powers of comprehension. 



LECTURE XV. 159 

All the institutions of the Bible, as we have already 
said, come under two classifications — the positive and the 
moral. We have already illustrated the positive, by refer- 
ence to the ordinances of time — the week being a subdi- 
vision, which depends upon the absolute will of Deity, 
while the day, month and year, are the result of the laws 
of nature. The week is, therefore, a positive institution. 
There have been much learned comment and profound rea- 
soning on this topic, but after all is said, we are bound to 
conclude, that it depends for its origin upon the absolute 
w^ill of God. 

We remark further that all the principles of religion 
are natural, i, e. belong to nature. When we are in distress 
or trouble, we pray or beg for relief — hence, prayer is not 
a positive institution. Children pray to their parents, be- 
fore they know the meaning of the word pray. They are 
prone to ask favors. They do so from the promptings of 
nature. Prayer depends upon faith, as faith does upon 
evidence. It confesses dependence, w^hile it asks succor. 
If a man be starvino*, or is otherwise in danojer of disso- 
lution, he becomes terrified, and often calls upon others to 
assist him in his prayers. So we see that prayer is nat- 
ural — confined to no age nor country. \_Bell rings.'] 

[January 12, 1860 — This morning President Campbell^ 
instead of the usual lecture, spoke to the class, upon the 
importance of order and punctuality ; and closed by com- 
menting on the prevalent deficiencies, in reading and 
speaking, "both in our institutions of learning and in the 
public spheres of life." We give only a few verbatim ex- 
tracts, the address being almost exclusively designed, for 
the correction and reproof of the class. — Rep.] 

"'Order is heaven's first law.' It is essential to the 



160 LECTURE XV 

happiness and prosperity of the human family, in every 
department of life. Every where in the universe we see 
a consummate embodiment of this principle. It is all 
order. Hence, it is said very properly by some philoso- 
phers, to be the first lesson impressed upon the human 
mind by an intelligent investigation of the principles of 
heaven and earth. The great purpose of education, is to 
draw out — to develop the human understanding — to give 
it vigor and strength, with which to grapple the mysteries 
of science, and the tongue and the pen are the grand in- 
strumentalities, by which the principles of education are 
disseminated among men. 

" Owing to defective education, or bad models, or both, 
we have in the modern pulpit, a reading tone, a praying 
tone, and a preaching tone. 

" Strange Gods constituted a peculiar characteristic of 
the Greeks. They were strange to the Jews, who had 
been taught to worship the true God. The phrase 
'^ Strange Gods," means Alien Gods. They w^ere the in- 
vention of men — idolatry in the bud. As the phrase was 
used by the Gentiles so it is used now. It did not belong 
to the Jews ; they borrowed it from the Greeks." [Bell 
rings/\ 



LECTURE XVI. 161 

LECTURE XVI. 



GENESIS XXIvYII. 



Gentlemex — There is not, in the limits of literature, a 
more touching biography, than that of Joseph. In it, we 
have the most splendid portraiture, of a young man of 
probity and honor — maintaining his integrity, under the 
most trying circumstances, and his faithfulness to God, 
under persecutions, the most cruel and persistent. We 
do not propose to enter into the particulars of his life in 
this morning's Lecture, but shall direct your attention to 
a principle, which underlies all our learning, and is the 
acting element of our nature. We call it the power of 
belief — usually denominated faith. It is made to apply 
to a great many things, that are not properly within its 
horizon. It is a pre-eminent element in the nature of 
man. It is a positive entity in his mental constitution ; 
and properly understood, will be found to be most essen- 
tial, to his improvement. 

We have to learn the first, and all the letters of the al- 
phabet, by faith. We must know that certain letters or 
signs, are adopted by common consent, to represent the 
sounds of the human voice — hence we learn the A B C by 
faith. 

We wish to give you, rudimental principles, that are the 
basis of pure facts in the human constitution, as recog- 
nized in human history. 

We remark further that faith is an element, as essential to 
man, as reason ; and I can not discover, why any man should 
give a higher place to reason, than to faith, in the grada- 
tion of the powers of the human understanding. 
14 



162 LECTUllE XVI. 

Reason has of course to do with the perception and atti- 
tude of things — with the comparison of one thing with 
another, locating and marking the difference — then draw- 
ing corollaries and conclusions : And we have terms for 
the various processes of reason, distinguishing its offices, 
from those of other powers of the mind. 

We have the proofs of bipeds, quadrupeds, and multi- 
peds, in what we call the analogies of living and moving 
creatures. 

Words alone, enable us to distinguish between the dif- 
ferent powers of men. Yet we must look into the generic 
idea, before we can clearly discriminate and appreciate 
successfully the gifts and powers bestowed upon us. Now, 
we classify things in this way, and in classification we 
compare them separate, and finally dispose of what are 
called the discordant elements of nature. 

But we look now particularly into th^ idea of faith, 
which of course, always pre-supposes testimony or evidence. 
We can not have faith, without testimony ; they are rela- 
tive terms and this constitutes one of the important facts, 
to be remembered in the study of the sacred volume. We 
must have the testis (witness) the testimony and the testa- 
ment — all from, the same 'radix. 

Now, whether testimony be credible or not, is a matter 
for investigation ; and here reason begins to work. 
Whether testimony is veritable or not, whether it is good, 
bad or indifferent, is to be decided by certain attributes. 
There is no telling the degrees, existing between the barest 
possibility, and the barest probability ; and with these there 
is a plausible probability, that arises in the process of 
reasoning. We do not propose to designate the degrees 
of credibility, which may carry us to a moral certainty. 
Faith, however, is pure belief; and is certainly the most 



LECTURE XVI. 163 

important element, in the intellectual constitution of man ; 
for by it alone, does any man convert the experiences of 
other men, to his uses. 

As already observed, there is a continuous exercise of 
faith, in the study of literature. For illustration : We 
have what we call a dictionary — a book of evidence. Ev- 
idence of what ? Why, of the guaranteed meaning of words ! 
Every one who looks for a word, in any lexicon — whether 
English, Latin or Grreek — and thus ascertains its meaning, 
is to that extent walking by faith, in his efforts to under- 
stand the significance of written or spoken language. 

In deciding upon the origin and derivation of a particu- 
lar word, a hundred questions may arise, which reason must 
decide ; and that decision may involve the amount of faith, 
due to the evidence. No one can graduate the shades of 
faith, but we all know it grows, until from absolute incre- 
dulity, there is not an inkling of doubt. We have general 
terms which express the character of faith, as weak faith, 
strong faith, and it reaches by degrees, under the influence 
of accumulated testimony, the full assurance of faith — in 
the truth of a proposition — when Ave entertain no more 
doubt of it, than we have of our own existence. Indeed. 
we often entertain as thorough a conviction of the truth of 
a proposition, based upon moral evidence, as of the result 
of a mathematical demonstration.^ But mathematics is in 
a different category altogether. 

* The kind of faith is always determined by the thing believed — • 
every thing shall produce after its kind — while the degree of faith 
depends largely upon the amount and character of the evidence. A 
belief in Geology is geological faith; a belief in Astronomy is astro- 
nomical faith, and a belief in the Gospel is evangelical or gospel 
faith. The strength of the faith will be affected by the testimony on 
which it rests. M, 



164 LECTURE XVI. 

We consider any result ascertained by testimony, as 
more or less certain, according to the amount and kind of 
proof; but results ascertained bj'' mathematical processes? 
as absolutely true. But upon Avhat is the science of reason- 
ing by mathematics, based, if not upon certain convention- 
al terms — accredited by faith. Mathematics defines the 
terms, and faith gives them significancy. An angle is an 
angle, whether it be an acute, obtuse, or right angle, and 
thus are principles fixed, in what we call the sub-basis of 
mathematical certainty. Nevertheless, we may say with 
truth, that w^e have. as much assurance of certainty, in re- 
gard to matters of fact, through faith as we have through 
mathematics proper. It is only a different kind of assur- 
ance. The one is from evidence, the other from argu- 
ment. 

We by no means concede wisdom to those skeptics, in 
and out of the Church, who say that faith is a bad foun- 
dation, on which to rest the eternal destiny of man. They 
say we require assurance in all other matters, and why 
not have it here. This is ignoratio elenchi — a mistaken 
position, for we observe that matters of fact, ascertained 
by competent testimony, or otherAvise, are as much a cer- 
tainty to us, whether we wish to have them so, or not. 
If a man is told that his only son, in whom all his hopes 
are centered, has been suddenly killed, it is certainly a 
heart-rending fact. It is not the belief, however, that makes 
it so, but the thing believed, and so on to the end of the 
category. Hence, we say all the power of any kind of 
faith is in the character of the thing believed. We hear of 
a great many occurrences, in which we have entire confi- 
dence, which fail to produce any effect upon us, because 
of the character of the occurrences themselves. 

It is very important, young gentlemen, to make these 



LECTURE XVI. 165 

distinctions early in our historical and biographical read- 
ings. God has kindly given the power of belief to man, 
to enable him to profit by the experiences of others. With- 
out it, every man's knowledge Avould be limited by his 
own experience. The reading of the lives of eminent 
men, of their fortunes and misfortunes, contributes largely 
to our fund of knoAvledge. In olden times, so important 
w^as it deemed, to have historical knowledge, that when 
OEsop wrote his world-renowned fables, they were assumed 
to be true. Now, if not strictly true, they contained 
moral conclusions, which were valuable. Facts are im- 
mutable, and though w^e may not readily perceive their 
relations, by close analysis and comparison, we may arrive 
at conclusions which are valuable. This is not only true 
in the science of numbers or quantities, but in the science 
of human affairs. 

If we look about us, we shall find that we are walking 
by faith, in all the spheres of human thought and action. 
Hence, it was all-wise and all-good, in our Heavenly 
Father, to make this, the great fundamental principle of 
both religion and morality. 

In the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, the Apostle Paul, 
happily defines faith in this wise : ''Xow, faith is the sub- 
stance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not 
seen." This properly developed, is a handsome definition. 
It is very rare that the inspired writers define terms, but 
we presume the importance of this, accounts for this de- 
parture from the general usage. 

This is an exceedingly important and deeply interesting 
theme, inasmuch as our civilization and salvation depend 
equally upon faith — the first in the testimony of men, and 
the last in the testimony of God. By faith we learn to 
read — by faith we learn the definitions of the terms of 



166 LECTURE XVII. 

science, by faith we look far into the shady past and fu- 
ture of the experiences of humanity.* \_Bell rings,~\ 



LECTURE XVII. 



GENESIS XXXIX. 



Gentlemen — There is no study more popular, or more 
interesting to the great mass of mankind, than what we 
call biography. I presume there is a more general culti- 
vation of the taste for biography in the literary world 
than for any other description of literature, owing to the 
curiosity of human nature to know the fortunes, good or 
bad, of those who have obtained conspicuity in the drama 
of human aflfairs. 

We desire to say in passing, that we do not approve of 
the word "fortimesJ^ We are sorry it has been canonized 
by the public. There is really no such thing in the uni- 
verse, as what we call fortune, in the sense here referred 
to. Its derivation is from for s — a Latin word, indicative 
of chance, merely. We know too, it has been canonized 
by still another authority, and made to refer to the laws 
or providences of God. The word, among the educated 
classes, merely refers to a series of developments, or 

^ In this rationalistic age, it is very important to make broad and 
clear the distinction between Faith and Reason. Mr. Campbell has 
given much attention to this matter in these Lectures. And it will 
be seen, that he properly appreciates the power of Faith, as an e ement 
of success, in all the affairs of life. M. 



LECTURE XVII. 167 

events, the causes of which are inscrutable to the human 
understanding; and for this reason, are spoken of as 
coming under the head of chance or accident. 

The ancients because they could not see the concatena- 
tion of events, superstitiously referred them to fortune or 
chance. The word, no matter how, has become popular- 
ized, and we have in common parlance the phrase, '^ for- 
tunes" or chances of human life. If such language were 
proper, we should be compelled to admit, that human life is 
a lottery, and such being the case, that a man embarks 
blindly upon the ocean of life, the sport of every wind 
and wave, without any stimulus to exertion, in the pursuit 
of honorable ends, his destiny in life being the result of 
chance. But this is wholly inadmissible, and we consider 
it a real misfortune, for a man to believe in any thing 
called misfortune. 

There is a strong saying of the prophet, which may 
well be cited here: ''Is there evil in the city and the 
Lord has not done it ?'' What does this mean? Is God 
the author of evil ? Observe, if you please, that there 
are two kinds of evil in the w^orld — moral and physical. 
Of course, the latter is here referred to. There are mis- 
fortunes, so called, which pain and agonize the human 
system. They may be called physical evils, not moral. 

There are apparent contingencies to us, because we can 
not trace the concatenation— the sequence of events. 
There is a visible and an invisible hand of God. Such is 
the order and regularity of the divine economy, that we 
can foretell an eclipse of the sun or moon, measure the 
paths of the planets, the times of their appearance and 
disappearance in the visible heavens, and if properly ed- 
ucated in Astronomy, we can tell to a second when these 
changes will occur. Now, this exactitude of calculation 



168 LECTURE XVII. 

has true science for its basis ; and without observation and 
calcuhition all seems hap-hazard. Now, chance, strictly 
speaking, represents only w^hat we can not explain. We 
know there can be no effect, moral or physical, without ad- 
equate cause, and it is important to remember that the 
government of the w^orld is in the hands of the All- Wise 
and Omnipotent Ruler, the Creator, the Preserver, the 
Friend of man. 

It is scarcely necessary to observe that w^e do not ap- 
prove of chance and lottery games of any kind whatso- 
ever. They are, for the most part, dishonorable tricks, 
that abstract small or large sums of money from the 
pocket of one man, to be transferred to the pocket of an- 
other, Avithout a due equivalent. We hold that there is 
hap-hazard, and much sin, in all kinds of gambling ; and 
that it ought to be wholly repudiated by every man who 
wishes to maintain the high and competent bearing 
of a gentleman, and a useful and honorable member 
of society. 

These remarks, on '' fortune and misfortune," bring us 
naturally to the consideration of the good and bad for- 
tunes of Joseph. They have been the subject of much 
comment. It has been said that the selection of instru- 
ments for the accomplishment of the great purposes of 
Deity, in ancient times, took place as in lotteries, by the 
hand of God. In order to have a unity of reliance, it was 
important that all remarkable events should be referred to 
the hand of God ; as in the election of a successor to 
Judas, and in order to mark the chosen one as approved 
of heaven, they cast lots, in order to ascertain which God 
approved. Matthias was chosen, for reasons best known 
to the Infinite Mind. Thus the lot became the general re- 
sort on occasions of difficulty. 



LECTURE XVII. 169 

The history of Josepli is most interesting. There is 
one point in his history which is of great importance. He 
was persecuted for his virtues. If he liad done anything 
amiss to father or motlier, biothcr or sister, there might 
have been something to justify or excuse an attack on liis 
character; but all concur in acquitting him of any thing 
of the kind. He was a young man of fine appearance, 
and was, in all respects, body, soul and spirit, as perfect 
a young man as any of his cotemporaries at least. He 
was selected by Divine Providence for a great work, and 
it was highly important that he should be educated. It is 
a delicate matter, however, to assume, even in these times, 
the truth of the proposition that men ought to be edu- 
cated for certain spheres of action in human society. The 
words predestination, election, and others of kindred sig- 
nification, have become so full of controversy that they re- 
quire due consideration, although, in the sense of modern 
religious philosophers, they do not once occur in Holy 
Writ. Yet we do not suppose for a moment that God cre- 
ated this vast universe of matter and animation, and dis- 
missed it at once to the government of chance, or left 
it even to the regulations of physical laws. If such were 
the case there would be no distinction of character what- 
ever. But man has intellectual and moral, and, above all, 
spiritual power. And these different powers of the human 
constitution must be developed and employed — developed 
that they may be successfully employed in promoting the 
happiness of their possessors, and of others. 

It is very important to know precisely what we call a 
man's duty. But it is highlj^ improper for a man to pry 
into the misty future, or rather to try to do so, by witch- 
craft, wizzard-craft, or any other craft, comprising the 

visionary schemes which originate in the human brain and 
15 



170 LECTURE XVII. 

are encouraged by the credulity of the ignorant and su- 
perstitious. Such things ought not to be tolerated by any 
man of common sense. No man ought to try to draw 
aside the vail which conceals the future. It is far better 
for man to remain in ignorance of what God has in store 
for him, than to have a full-orbed view of it. I agree with 
those who esteem ignorance of the future a blessing to 
man. Do 3'ou ask Avhy ? We answer, that if he could 
contemplate the assured beatitudes of his future destiny 
he would be miserable while on earth, his very life would 
be an incubus upon him. Whatever God has concealed 
from m;m, he has concealed in benevolence. Whatever he 
has revealed, he has revealed in benevolence. Mark the 
important truth, young gentlemen, that the distinguishing 
attribute of God's dealings with man is benevolence. So 
let us sing with the bard : 

" Oh ! blindness to the future, kindly given, 

That each may fill the station marked by heaven." 

You will see that this great and distinguished person, 
although hated and persecuted for years, was honored in 
the world, and became as God to Pharaoh. One calamity 
following close upon the heels of another came upon him, 
but his virtue — his unfaltering trust in God — sustained 
him. 

It seems that he was wonderfully skilled in the inter- 
pretation of symbols, which was an especial gift to him, 
for the benefit of himself, his family, and the whole world. 
It is not diflBcult to show that one boy of seventeen years 
of age, exiled from home though he was, bore in his own 
person the fortunes of all time. If we extend our obser- 
vations to the history of the whole twelve tribes of Israel, 
with all the changes and fluctuations of that history, we 



LECTURE XVII. 1 71 

may perceive clearly that but for the fact that Joseph was 
sold as a slave into Egypt, the condition of human society 
would be very different from what it is. How opposite 
the saying of the prophet, " God's way is in the mighty 
waters,'' and his footstep may be traced. ^'Is there evil 
in the city" (physical evil) '' and the Lord has not done it ? " 
These are strong sayings. We sometimes say God permits 
this and commands that to be done, but we will best un- 
derstand the history of Joseph, when we view it in the light 
of special and providential ordinances.^ [Bell rings,) 



LECTURE XVIII. 



GENESIS XL. 



Gentlemen — The phenomenon of dreams, has been of 
great interest to a large portion of mankind in all ages of 
the world. Dreaming is the most singular of mental pro- 
cesses. We can not analyze the properties, nor understand 
all the constituency of dreams. Solomon's defiinition, Ec. 
v: 3, 7, is perhaps considered by most men to be a final 
disposal of the subject. He says dreaming '^comes from 
a multitude of thoughts" — passing through the mind, I 
presume, that is to say, our dreams are for the most part a 



■^Mr. Campbell was a strong believer in the special providences 
of God. He not only accepted the Bible as God's Book, but he saw^ 
in all the chain of events that are recorded in it, God's special and 
wonderful Providence. Consequently, his faith in the Bible was 
truly sublime. And this faith made him what he was, a giant in 
intellect and a child in humility. M. 



172 LECTURE XVIII. 

continuation of our waking thoughts — hence, it has been 
set down as a criterion by which to estimate our dreams- 
Dreams of the kind here referred to, are nothing more nor 
less, than every day thoughts passing through our minds 
when in a state of sleep. Our minds are subject to wak- 
ing as well as sleeping dreams, which are the result of the 
continuous activity of the mind, under different circum- 
stances, when not controlled, or directed by the will. But 
dreams of this nature do not come within the sphere of 
prognostication. The dreams of the Bible are those which 
come entirely outside of our waking thoughts. There is 
something truly startling in a vision of this kind, where a 
man, during a period of profound repose, finds himself, 
communing with persons and places which he never saw 
or thoui2;ht of before. This is one of the essential charac- 
teristics of what we denominate admonitory dreams. There 
is no question that dreams have been, and may still be in- 
tended as admonitory, i, e, such dreams as carry us en- 
tirely out of the walks of our waking hours. A dream of 
this kind may have a moral and should be so regarded and 
understood. 

There is, however, a great deal of superstition on one side 
of society, and a great deal of indifference on the other, in 
regard to the phenomenon of dreams. Some expect too 
much, others not enough from dreams. 

The importance of the dream, in the chapter read to-day, 
is because of the association with an individual; who seems 
at a particular crisis, to have had in his keeping the des- 
tiny of the world. No man who has lived, has been m.ore 
closely connected with events, upon which was suspended 
the safety of the human race. Yet this fact originated in 
his interpretation of dreams, or of the symbols of a vision, 
which enabled the King of Egypt, through Joseph's instru- 



LECTURE XVIII. 173 

mentality to guard against the disastrous effects of a seven 
years' famine. 

When ^ve look at the connecting links of the great 
chain of Providential events, associated with the life of 
Joseph, we can not avoid the conclusion that he was set 
apart as the divine instrument for the execution of the 
great purposes of God, in connection with the Jewish 
people. 

The dreams of the Bible, we doubt not, have transpired 
in particular states of the mind ; when the body, in pro- 
found repose, presented no obstacle to the free and clear 
contemplation of such visions as passed in review before 
it — w^hen the mind was perfectly abstracted from all sur- 
rounding circumstances, as it w^ere. disembodied for the 
time, and brought naked in the presence of those visions, 
which symbolized events involving the destinies of a na- 
tion, or, it may be, of the race of man itself. They came 
entirely without the purview of any association of natu- 
ral ideas. Such were the dreams of the ancient days of 
Egypt, which carried man far beyond his natural sphere^ 
and were, therefore, truly startling. 

It doubtless required time to comprehend the full sig- 
nificance of these visions. . But, in ancient times, there 
were rudimental and radical laws, for the interpretation 
of the portents of Providential dreams, that is, those com- 
ing entirely outside the area of human thought. Hence, 
the places and symbols were pictured. Most of such 
dreams were robed in splendid imagery, sometimes aw- 
fully impressive ; but it Avas imagery suited to the scenes 
made to pass in review before the human mind. There 
w^ere rules for the interpretation of every symbol and 
every picture. It w^as a beautiful study, and embodied 



174 LECTURE XVIII. 

classified principles, resembling, in some respects, our al- 
phabetical systems. 

But these things are not essential to our condition of 
life ; but to understand the reasons why these things were 
so, is important, as well as interesting. The study of such 
things teaches us to realize that when there is a special 
providence over a special people, for a special purpose, 
they become so much the objects of divine supervision 
and direction as to have their w^ays marked out to them 
in dreams and visions of the night. 

I once heard a gentleman of integrity and veracity say, 
in reference to a similar matter, that he was once engaged 
in the harvest-field, when a very heavy storm came up 
suddenly and unexpectedly. The threatening cloud w^as 
surcharged w^ith electricity, and knowing that the rain 
would soon commence, he took shelter beneath a large tree, 
standing near by, and while the rain w^as pouring dow^n in 
torrents, he, unconsciously as it were, walked out into it, 
about forty paces from the tree, w^hen a single flash of 
lightning shivered the tree to splinters. Why he walked 
out into the rain, in this involuntary manner, he could not 
divine. We have similar circumstances reported fre- 
quently, and equally remarkable. 

Such incidents as these, taken in connection with fhe 
phenom.ena of dreams, w^ould go to show that God has 
communicated knowledge to man in mysterious ways. 

Joseph's dreams were of the symbolic kind, and there- 
fore required what, in the ancient law, was called oneiro- 
mancy — a sort of criticism established in old times to tell 
what each symbol meant; and for their skill in this art 
some persons had high positions in society, as they do 
now, for interpreting the Scriptures. 

Joseph was pre-eminently skilled in this department, 



LECTURE XVIII. 175 

and while in Egypt was made to render very great and im- 
portant service, communicating facts to different persons 
which thej^ could not have ascertained from any other ac- 
cessible source. 

In connection with this subject, it is important to realize 
the standing grand meridian line, passing through the 
whole patriarchal dispensation. There was always a sin- 
gle man in whom the destiny of the Avorld was deposited. 
Of course, you would readily conclude that Noah had the 
fortunes of earth in his person, just as much as Adam. 
Adam represented the antediluvian, and Noah the post- 
diluvian age. 

Now these persons, and others in the same category, by 
taking notes of their respective eras, in reference to gov- 
ernment, must have learned a great deal by observation, 
had they no supernatural understanding, and thereby must 
have formed certain conclusions, that certain acts of men 
were morally right and others wrong. Conclusions of 
this kind, based upon observations on the history of man, 
would grow into a sort of classification, and eventually a 
science of man would exist, though it might not be scien- 
tifically perfect in all its elements. In this way, too, it 
may have been, that oneiromancy became a science, so far 
as the peculiar historj^ of the Egyptian age required it. 
God certainly communed with his people in the then con- 
dition of the world, through the splendid medium of 
dreams and visions.^ 

The Egyptians, according to all history, sacred and pro- 

^ It should be remembered, in this connection, that God, in times 
past, ns-ed "divers manners" in cominunicating liis purposes to man, 
bat lias in tliese later days spoken to us by his Son (vide Heb. i : 1). 
Because God once spoke through dreams and visions, it does not 
follow that he does so now. We have a perfect revelation of His . 



176 LECTURE xvirr. 

fane, were the most civilized people of earth, at the time 
of these visions. Profine historians attest the fact, which 
is sufficiently confirTiied by the single statement, that Mo- 
ses, who was skilled in all the learning of the Egyptians, 
was selected as the fittest person living, to lead the Is- 
raelites out of Egyptian bondage. He was placed in a po- 
sition to acquire a knowledge of the highest civilization, 
and all the science of that distinguished people. The 
Israelites were delivered by a special providence, and he 
was the chosen instrument, and in order to fit him for the 
station, he had the extraordinary gift of the oneirocritics. 
In the interpretation of the various dreams and visions 
presented on the occasion, Moses had greatly the advan- 
tage of Pharaoh, and, indeed, of all others, and acquired 
a power and influence in his position which were irresist- 
ible. 

Thus it is, gentlemen, that God prepares and uses men 
for certain purposes ; but why we know not, nor is it im- 
portant that we should know. In the sequel we are per- 
mitted to see what the object was to be attained, and to 
appreciate the wisdom and goodness of his providence. 

It is generally conceded that we have another illustration 
of this feature of the divine government, in the mission 
of that illustrious champion of liberty — George Washing- 
ton. He was raised up as was Moses, though he did not 
have assigned to him, the destiny of a people so great in 
their relations to God and to the universe. Still the influ- 
ence of his achievements, has been felt throughout the 
realms of civilization, and the ultimate end of his mission. 



will to us, an i consoquentiV can not expect any additional light. 
^^pil*itualis^l, witli all its concomitant evils, grows out of a niiscon- 
ception of this fact. M. 



LECTURE xviir. 177 

no one knows. The great problems in human government 
growing out of his career, are not yet solved — not yet 
developed. 

In the dealings of God with the Jewish people, and in 
the revolutions and changes of other nations, it is easy to 
recoo:nize the hand of God. Just here let me refer to a 
fact which may have escaped your attention. We all 
know that Abraham was represented as being very rich in 
silver and precious stones. These were the fortune of the 
great founder of the Jewish nation. It was said of them 
(Deut. XV. 6), substantially, that they should lend money 
to many people, but never borrow; and this fact was com- 
municated to them, three thousand years ago. Now, if 
you pay any attention to European affairs, you will find 
that the Jcays exercise a wonderful influence in that way. 
The Rothschild (Jewish bankers) can control to a great 
extent, the movements of all the crowned heads of Europe. 
It is well understood that by an edict of these money 
kings, the sinews of war can be paralyzed or put in mo- 
tion. Here is a single family of the Jewish people, occu- 
pying almost as important a position, as did Moses in his 
day and generation. It was positively said that the Jews 
should be bound in slavery — also that they should be 
lenders of money to many nations. Truly the Scriptures 
are verified throughout all time, yet comprehended in his- 
tory.^ [_Bell rings,'] 

■^ The Jew, wherever found, is a standing monument of the truth 
of the religion of Christ. Endeavoring to destroy that religion, he 
becomes one of its chief supports. Truly does God bring good out 
of evil, and cause the wrath of man to praise him. The Jew is as 
much a distinct individuality to-day, as he was in the time of the 
Saviour. Although scattered over the face of the earth, he is still 
the same restless, selfish, uncompromising individual. M. 



178 LECTURE XIX. 



LECTURE XIX. 



GENESIS XLIX. 



Gentlemen — We have in the chapter just read (Gen. 
xlix), a prophetic benediction — one not merely relating to 
a family at the time of pronouncing it, but one that per- 
tains to the remedial system. It is a patriarchal blessing. 
Jacob is represented as calling his sons together, in order 
to pronounce, what was anciently called, a paternal bene- 
diction. The manner, is beautifully illustrated in the third 
and fourth verses. Mark the sentence, ^'Unstable as 
water, thou shalt not excel," etc. 

The Jews venerated this book as much as Christians do, 
and they interpret it as they would any other literary 
composition, i, e.^ literally — as having no double meanings. 
They do not indulge in metaphorical speculations, con- 
cerning the Bible. The fortunes of these people, were 
given in a very few words. For example, in the case of 
Reuben, the first of the family, he says, '' Thou art my 
first-born, my might, and the beginning of my strength — 
the excellency of dignity and the excellency of power." 
All these characteristics, were implied in the rights of 
primogeniture; which with the Jewish people, were then, 
and are now, very important matters. Jacob says plainly 
to Reuben, " unstable as water, thou shalt not excel." Reu- 
ben had been guilty of a very gross misdemeanor. 

We call your attention, gentlemen, to the first line of 
the fourth verse. It is a proverb, adopted in modern 
times, that the man called volatile or versatile, who turns 
his hand to a great many different things, but soon be- 
comes tired of his undertakings and abandons them, one 



LECTURE XIX. 179 

after another, in quick succession, never does, and never 
can, excel in any thing. Hence, it is important that those 
who desire to excel in any department of art or science, 
or in any sphere of human action, should have some pri- 
mary object in view, and attend assiduously to it. It is 
much better to have a perfect knowledge of one science, 
than a defective and imperfect knowledge of half a dozen. 
Stability is essential to success ; instability is the com- 
panion of misfortune and want, and is an obstacle to dis- 
tinguished success in any department of life. 

" Thou shalt not excel." The temper is doubtless taken 
into the account, but his moral character is given as a 
second reason. Reuben had been guilty of a flagrant vi- 
olation of law, and for that reason the patriarchal vale- 
dictory address is, by no means, flattering to this branch 
of the family. 

Of Simeon and Levi, he says, '' My soul come not thou 
into their secret ; unto their assembly mine honor, be not 
thoLi united ; for in their anger they slew a man, and in 
their self-will digged down a wall." That is, they had com- 
mitted homicide, and violated the rights of property. This 
is an awful character to be given of his sons by their 
father, but it is made the basis of their future fortunes. 
This account of the moral character of Simeon and Levi 
is of great value to those who wish to trace their history, 
and contemplate its influence on their destiny. The lives 
of Simeon and Levi may be distinctly traced in Jewish 
history. 

It is important to remember, in this connection, that the 
Priesthood belonged to the family of Levi. Commenta- 
tors say they were not only exiled, but were denied any 
right of inheritance. It was not required that a man 
should be pious in order to be a Levite. He was so by 



180 LECTURE XIX. 

birth. The virtue of the institution was in the blood. 
This distinction is made as prominent as any otlier. Yet, 
notwithstanding this clear distinction in regard to cere- 
monies, pertaining to the flesh, to make all this a reality 
and to convert these customs and usages into the worship 
of the true Church, as has been done by some, is one of 
the greatest errors recorded in human history. The Ju- 
daical Institutes were adopted by both the Greek and 
Roman Churches. We have the sub-basis of almost all 
kinds of institutions in the laws and institutes of one 
country. 

In ancient times, the custom of paying tithes was con- 
sidered, as in our country, a worldly institution, and in 
Europe, rather than submit to an unjust tax, to support a 
priesthood whom they did not approve, and a religion 
which their consciences condemned, thousands upon thou- 
sands emigrated to this country — indeed, this was the ac- 
tive cause of the stampede of persecuted citizens from the 
Old World to the New. And from these came that strict- 
ness of religious sentiment and rigid sense of moral jus- 
tice, which we sometimes call New Englandism. The 
characteristic principles or doctrines held by the great 
mass of these emigrants, were, freedom of opinion and 
freedom of speech and action, in matters pertaining to 
conscience. We remark that men have suffered more in 
the maintenance of these rights, than in the attainment 
and preservation of fortune. 

Inroads and innovations, resulting in apostate institu- 
tions, have generall}^ been trivial at first, like the mighty 
rivers, which may be traced to a small fountain. The 
enormities growing out of a union of church and state 
were small matters in their incipiency, but grew until they 



I 



LECTURE XIX. 181 

were intolerable, and have convulsed states and churclies 
innumerable. 

The fundamental principles of government, called the 
rights of man, Avere found incorporated in the old Jewish 
institution, as well as in the modern Christian institution. 

The Priesthood began in the family of Levi, and the 
Sceptership in the tribe of Judah. These arrangements 
were made by the father of the holy tribes. Stooping as 
the lion, and crouching like the tiger, were intended as 
symbolical characteristics of that great tribe. The scepter 
was never to depart from Judah — they should never want 
a representative — until Shiloh came, and to this person 
was the gathering, the congregating of all the world, to 
be. There is a remiarkable unanimity in the facts of this 
book, and we have in it figures just as clear as the char- 
acters representing the sounds of the human voice ; and 
we are thus enabled to trace facts and important eras in 
the Jewish age, as correctly, and almost as easily, as we 
can follow up the great events in our own history, or the 
modern history of other nations. 

It was said the scepter should not depart from Judah, 
nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until when ? 
Until Shiloh came! Here, then, are fifteen hundred years 
embraced in one period before his coming. Shiloh means 
Messiah — the Son. This was the Elijah that was to come, 
which is interpreted to us by John the Harbinger, who 
preceded the Messiah. The scepter did not depart from 
the royal tribe — the tribe of Judah — the family of David. 
The skeptic objects to this, as too vague a statement to 
rely upon for proof of so important a matter. They want 
a clear basis for the support of such important facts. Ask 
these gentlemen what they want, and when they make out 



182 LECTURE XIX. 

their requirements definitely, we have just the proof on 
hand to satisfy them. 

No man with the telescope of faith, and the eye of culti- 
vated reason, can fail to see and believe, that the prophe- 
cies of the Bible have been fulfilled down to the present 
day. 

In regard to the possibility of a standing miracle, the 
argument of these skeptics is, that a standing miracle is 
always standing, and, therefore, no miracle at all. There 
is one kind of facts in this book w^hich can be relied upon 
by all sensible men — a sort of backbone of Jewish history 
found in the history of the two tribes — Levi embodying the 
priesthood and altar, and Judah typifying the king and scep- 
ter. You may here find a synopsis of Jewish history, well 
worth looking into, by those who really desire to understand 
these important matters. The Jews look at these facts 
and read these portions of the sacred volume just as we do, 
but repudiate any such person as Jesus Christ.^ \_Bell 
rings.^ 

^ Mr. Campbell spoke also of the importance attached by the Jews 
to the births in their respective tribes, and the strictness of their at- 
tention to the right of circumcision, the record of the birth, and at- 
tending circumstances, also of the opinions and views of leading Jews 
in this and foreign countries with whom he had conversed frequently 
upon these subjects. I w^ould add, that Mr. C. spoke this morning 
more rapidly than usual, owing perhaps to irritation, caused by the 
misconduct of some of the students, and I am by no means confi- 
dent, that I have not failed in some parts of this lecture to report 
him correctly. — Eeportei\ 



LECTURE XX. 183 



LECTURE XX. 

GENESIS XLIX, 

Gextlemex — We have a rery interesting summary in 
the last chapters of this book, of the divisions and history 
of the Jewish people. We have history and prophecy, 
united, so as to enable us to connect the past, present, and 
future, of this great and monumental people. 

It was a custom of the old patriarchs, and by the way, 
a very venerable one, at the approach of death, to give di- 
rections to their children, concerning the future. Hence, 
in part from this custom, we have history and prophecy, 
going hand in hand, throughout this whole volume. Records 
of past events are given us in the sequel, based on prom- 
ises, anterior to what has happened ; therefore, we have a 
whole volume, containing a history of the past and a proph- 
ecy of the future. 

The aged and venerable Jacob, appears here in the last 
scenes of his eventful life, with his family around him. 
Having called a convention of his posterity, he addresses 
them in the language recorded in this chapter. The for- 
tunes of each of the twelve tribes, are here briefly por- 
trayed. The first born was Reuben. He says to him, 
" thou art my first born, my might, the beginning of my 
strength,'^ etc. What are called birthrights, were absolute, 
irrespective of the character of the inheritor. Reuben's 
family was the first tribe of Jacob — of the family of Israel 
— and there were other frailties in his moral character, 
besides instability ; which alone was sufl&cient, to prevent 
his arriving at excellence. 

Simeon and Levi, come next ; neither having much ex- 



184 LECTURE XX. 

cellence of cliaracter, and their personal characters were 
by no means much appreciated, by Moses. 

The will of Jacob, as presented here, is in a very singu- 
lar style — perfectly original; and doubtless, altogether 
consistent with his feelings. He speaks like a man in so- 
liloquy, Avhich is the most powerful and effective way of ex- 
pressing one's self. 

From Levi, who was a servant at the altar, sprang 
Moses and Aaron. The tribe of Levi, Avere deprived of 
any portion of real estate, and derived their support alto- 
gether, from service at the altar of the priests.* Having 
spoken of these, he comes next to Judah. Li him we have 
the Jewish people. He is highly honored — aggrandized 
in the superlative degree. Judah means praise — it is all 
glory. He is the lion's whelp. The destiny of his tribe, 
is made very emphatic. The most precious promise in 
this book, is made in the tenth verse ; as it assures us of 
the coming of Messiah — the Shiloh of the sacred historian. 

The book of Genesis, is regarded by all critics, whether 
Christian or Jewish, as one of the richest treasures vouch- 
safed to man. It has furnished names to many of the 
human family, and precious truths for man's enlightenment. 
Judah became distinguished, and from this tribe sprang 
the kings of Israel. Shiloh is sent as the Prince of peace, 
and ''unto him shall the gathering of the people be.'^ It 
should read peoples. The word indicates plurality, and 

"^This fact has been frequently used as an argument in favor of a 
salaried Clergy. The fallacy is in supposing that Preachers in the 
Christian Church come in the place of the Jewish Priests. It is 
right to pay any wortliy man who preaches faithfully the Gospel 
— such should be well supported — but it is wrong to conclude that 
there is a class of men in the church who have a right to a salary 
by virtue of their official character, M. 



LECTURE XX. 185 

the text clearly implies, that the Gentiles and all peoples, 
are incorporated in the term people, as here used. These 
three verses, properly interpreted, give us a historic view, 
so long before the events referred to transpired, that (hy 
accident, a few words icere here lost to the reporter). It 
constitutes one of the best arguments in favor of the truth 
of the Christian religion to be found in the book of 
Genesis. 

The remaining passages in this remarkable benediction, 
although interesting, are 'not as pre-eminently so as those 
already referred to. We shall, however, glance at some 
of them. That concerning Dan is a very singular oracle, 
and of ambiguous interpretation. Beside being a serpent, 
he was distinguished for power. 

There is a very beautiful passage in reference to Joseph. 
'' He is a fruitful bough," and clothed with fruit. This is 
a happy compliment, and has reference to his position in 
Egypt. When carried into Egypt, and sold into slavery, 
then honored and exalted, no man could have divined the 
intention of it. He was greatly blessed in person, and 
his history is the most interesting in the book of Gen- 
esis, and worthy of profound study. By degrees, he rose 
above the Pharaohs in real power and dignit}^ — was en- 
throned in the admiration and ajQfection of the people, and 
almost worshiped. 

It is wonderfully strange to us, that these old patriarchs 
should have seen so far into the future of the tribes ; but 
certain it is, that, by their prophetic power, they pene- 
trated the distant future, and told, with invariable accu- 
racy, what was to come from its dark recesses. 

It is said by all critics and lovers of the sublime and 
beautiful, that no benediction ever pronounced is so re- 
16 



186 LECTUKE XX. 

plete with richness of sentiment as the blessing pro- 
nounced by the dying patriarch upon his son Joseph. 

The only person that fills the beau ideal of the oracle 
concerning Benjamin, is that, remarkable character, Saul 
of Tarsus. Although it may seem difficult to make him 
the subject of the oracle, yet when we look into the cata- 
logue of the world's great men, and find one who seems 
to have risen out of Pngandom — outside of the country 
of the twelve tribes of Israel — the descendant of a par- 
ticular family, justly famous throughout the realms of civ- 
ilization — we readily conclude that such a fact is Avorthy 
of an oracle. And although the oracle has an abbrevi- 
ated form, it is a significant admonition of what was to 
come. Hence, a great many learned interpreters of the 
Scriptures of divine truth, recognizing him as the most 
distinguished of the tribe of Benjamin, have decided that 
the oracle has reference to Saul of Tarsus. 

We are told, at the close of the last scene in the life of 
the great patriarch, that " all these are the twelve tribes 
of Israel," . . . . " every one according to his 
blessing, he blessed them." He charged them concerning 
his body, and said to them, "I am to be gathered to my 
people," and, after the remarkable custom of the ancients, 
he directed them in reference to the place where his re- 
mains should repose. A great deal of interest is mani- 
fested, in the patriarchal age, in reference to the place of 
burial of the dead. And Jacob, having commanded his 
sons, in reference to his body, " yielded up the ghost, and 
was gathered unto his people." 

Thus, gentlemen, we have given you a brief summary 
of the lives of the three great patriarchs, Abro.ham, Isaac 
and Jacob. You will find in the lives of these great men 
as much of the truly sublime and divine in history and 



LECTURE XX. 187 

special providences, as tliere is in the whole Bible beside. 
One remark on providence. We have not time to discuss 
it now, but this much we must say, that in harmony with 
the whole creation, with the power and goodness disphiyed 
in giving birth to this mundane system, would it not be a 
serious reflection upon the character of the Creator of the 
world, to suppose for a moment that he does not feel the 
deepest interest in its destiny ? And would it not be en- 
tirely compatible with his glory to bring this grand drama 
to a close highly honorable to himself, to his government, 
and to the subjects of that government — so wise, so pow- 
erful, so benevolent ? There is only one way in which we 
can study these things profitably, and that is, by looking 
at the parts, and then viewing the whole in reference to 
the several parts. This rule should be a fixture in the 
minds of all who would reason aright on this great sub- 
ject.^ (Bell rings.) 

^ This is one of the peculiarities of Mr. Campbell's teaching. 
Having analyzed his subject, and looked at each point by itself, or 
in connection with other points, he then studied each point as related 
to tlie whole. And this, perhaps, enabled him to take that broad, 
comprehensive view of things which always characterized his teach- 
ings. M. 



188 LKCTUKE XXI. 

LECTURE XXI. 

Exodus, xxiy, xxv, 16. 

Gentlemen — We now commence to lecture upon that 
wliich properl}^ pertains to what we call religion; not re- 
ligion, however, in any special form of worship, but that 
which enters into the constituency of the great remedial 
system. We have but three forms of religion, to which 
we frequently refer, to-wit: the family, the national and 
the imperial or universal. Society, in all ages, from the 
earliest to the latest, has tended toward the formation of 
constitutional governments. But these governments have 
never attained the perfection which modern institutions 
exhibit. The social system has always existed in some 
form. It began in the family, then rose to the tribe, then 
to the nation, and culminates in the world. No one can 
study the heavens astronomically, and not observe how 
the very same economy permeates the entire area of all 
knowledge, celestial and terrestrial. We have the sun and 
fixed stars, also the wandering stars, called planets, and 
beside these there is another class called comets, which 
seem to pass through the universe, but which have never 
been fully understood by astronomers. 

There must be occasion for what we call a specialis in 
the government of nature. We must have general laws, 
and we must have special laws — in other words, law for 
a part and law for the whole. In the animal and vegeta- 
ble kingdoms, there are principles essential to their exist- 
ence, and these principles, or immutable laws, may be va- 
riously arranged. Hence, in order to understand any 
science, we must classify its principles. We see, there- 



LECTURE XXI. 189 

fore, the necessity of Logic in presenting all science in 
three or'more classes — the genus, the species, and the in- 
dividual. In no other form can man study science of any 
kind. Accordingly, Logic is the science of reason, and 
in this we have the individual word, the species or kind, 
and the genus of it. Philosophers say the most compre- 
hensive word in language is the verb to he. It is the gen- 
erallissimo of all words. It comprehends Grod, mind and 
matter ; every thing is comprehended in the word being/^ 
In the study of the Bible, and of all systems from which 
we derive education or instruction, we must enter into the 
elements — the essential philosophy — if we would succeed 
in our undertaking. 

The Bible itself is a book of facts — it is a dramatic vol- 
ume. It is the drama of the world, and that's a stage, 
'' where every man must play a part.^' 

There was no residuary matter at the creation. There 
is nothing, therefore, left out of science ; hence the world, 
in its entirety, becomes a perfect science. We have in all 
science fundamental and general arrangements. 

We come now to a study of infinite importance, and of 
profound interest to mankind — and that is, the study of 
types. We need the study of types, in order to under- 
stand our religion. Religion is a supernatural institution ; 
not natural, nor yet preternatural, but supernatural. 

Moses was a great type-founder, and he gives us an en- 
tirely new font of types, which, by special study on our 

^ The structure of language is highly saggestive of this fact. 
E%^ery proposition has a subject, copula and predicate. Being is 
always asserted in the copula, and this precedes the action or state 
asserted in the predicate. J^ife first and action next, is the law of 
all things. Hence, being is the most comprehensive word in all the 
area of human speech. M. 



190 LECTURE XXI. 

part, will enable us to become thoroughly acquainted with 
the typography of religion. It is the most perfect social 
arrangement that can be conceived or imagined; and we are 
now about to enter upon that portion of our labors which 
we deem the most necessary and important to a good un- 
derstanding of the religious system. It is retrospective 
of what we had in the patriarchal, and prospective of 
what we have in the Christian institution. We shall, there- 
fore, institute rigid and thorough examinations. 

Every thing here is providential. Moses himself is a 
phenomenon, from the beginning to the end of his his- 
tory. He was exposed to death, under a law of Egypt. 
He was put into an ark, and placed upon the river Nile, 
in the midst of crocodiles. His own sister was appointed 
his guardian, to stand upon the shore, and observe this 
ark. By a special providence, Pharaoh's daughter ap- 
pears upon the river bank, at her bathing hour, and the 
ark floating along at that point, the child providentially 
cried. That cry was the most eloquent oracle ever heard 
by the Egyptian or the Jewish people. Pharaoh's daugh- 
ter heard the cry, and dispatched a servant to look into 
this remarkable occurrence. She found the infant in the 
bulrushes, without any protector. The child was, provi- 
dentially, not fortunately, weeping. It was immediately 
adopted by the royal princess, being an exceedingly beau- 
tiful child. Beauty has sometimes been a source of great 
sin, and sometimes of great blessings. Pharaoh's daugh- 
ter's henrt was captivated by the beauty of the infant 
Moses. She hired a nurse to take care of him, not know- 
ing what she was beginning to do. So the child was prov- 
identially placed in the proper place to be developed. The 
word Moses means drawn out of the water. 

The Jewish people, were blessed in this remarkable 



LECTURE XXI. 191 

man. There never was before or since Moses, a man who 
possessed as much knowledge of God, during his labors 
of twice forty years duration ; half of which, were spent 
in leading the children of Israel, and the other half in 
leading the life of a courtier. 

We make these remarks, as prefatory to the study of 
the great institution, now to be comprehended — the reme- 
dial system by types. It is a noteworthy fact, gentlemen, 
that our types, with the use of one of the darkest, black- 
est substances, known — printers ink — have been the light 
of the world. And it is a sino-ular fact, that our lio-ht 
comes out of that which is providentially dark. It was 
providentially arranged that light should spring out of 
darkness, when the ingredients are rightly arranged and 
presented to the vision. It was thus arranged, that these 
types should be cast, and when studied and put in their 
proper, places to be read, they should give to man a proper 
and adequate idea of the arrangements of God. There is 
an especial order, in the construction of the tabernacle, 
which was built by the divine command, and which great 
and holy house of the Lord, we must study carefully, if w^e 
would have a proper appreciation of religion. 

We have taken a cursory view of the patriarchal age, 
comprehending the drama of creation, and the memorial 
biographies of the patriarchal fcithers, down to the pres- 
ent period; in which we have the great ideas, that per- 
meate, what w^e call religion. 

Here w^e enter upon the study of the house, first show- 
ing in its position, furniture, etc., the great principles, in 
harmony with the laws of life.^ This building (the Taber- 



^Mr. Campbell attached the greatest importance to a proper un- 
derstanding and appreciation of tlie Tabernacle. He regarded it as 



192 LECTURE xxr. 

naclc) Avas first a tent. The people had a pilgrimage to 
make, and carried it with them ; hence, the whole structure 
was made to be taken down and borne by men. Being 
pilgrims they carried their furniture with them. They 
pitched this tent, wherever they stopped. Those whose 
business it was to carry it, belonged to the family of Levi, 
while the high priest belonged especially to the family of 
Aaron. So long as they tarried anywhere, the services 
were going on in the sanctuary, and so it continued, until 
they came to the promised land — their own country. There 
in the course of time King Solomon, erected a splendid 
temple. We are, therefore, to study the temple, and the 
tabernacle at the same time ; for although the tabernacle 
was portable, it possessed everything pertaining to religion, 
and in the temple, was nothing more nor less, than was 
contained in the tabernacle. 

The chapters read this morning, gave us a general view 
of the commencement of it. We look at it standing East 
and West — longitudinally. It always opened to the rising 
sun. There were departments for the outer court, the inner 
court, and the most holy court. There was then furniture 
for the court that had a back to it ; then there was furniture 
for the holy place. There was a beautiful curtain, embossed 

containing the seeds of things — presenting to the eye the whole 
remedial system, in miniature. During the discussion of this sub- 
ject he was accustomed to spend much of the time in questioning the 
class, and enforcing upon the minds of all every particular connected 
with this significant type of the redemption through Christ. Of 
course it was impossible to report these incidental discussions, and 
consequently they are not given in the Lectures that follow. This 
omission nuist necessarily greatly detract from the interest that was 
always felt in Mr. Campbell's discussion of this subject. Neverthe- 
less we think enough is given to present every thing concerning the 
Tabernacle, in a clear light. M. 



LECTURE XXI. 193 

with cherubim between the holy and most holy — the holiest 
of all. It was the all important center of the devotion 
of the people. Now we have three states — the state of 
nature, the state of grace, and the state of glory. This 
is enough probably for the present, in order to give you 
the outlines essential to a proper appreciation of the grand 
ideas contained in this magnificent structure. 

The art of printing, and the art of figuring in mathe- 
matics, or otherwise^ are very important studies in order 
to a due appreciation of this institution. We have an 
alphabet printed in dark colors, favorable to the human 
eye — the black letter — in which is found all intellectual and 
moral light. As a source of intellectual light, its power 
is exhibited in giving significancy, to certain pictures. 
Again we have distinctions embodied in the vowels and 
consonants of language. Language in its structure, is rep- 
resentative of facts and ideas. Now we have the eye and 
the ear, wonderfully adapted to the entire development of 
man. The eye is the most important of all our means of 
communicating with the outer world, and for this reason 
we have letters for the eye, and the sounds represented by 
vowels and consonants, for the ear. Now, a man of intel- 
ligence, has only to look steadfastly upon these symbols, 
and by and by every idea there represented, will penetrate 
his mind and permeate his heart. It is true that the let- 
ters of the alphabet are positively arbitrary, as they are 
used to represent this or that sound ; but there is no 
other way of representing the vocal powers, and why 
may not technical terms be employed, provided they be 
clearly defined, and the definitions strictly adhered to? 
We find that a great deal of information, has been derived 
from pictures, graven by the chisel upon marble pillars. 
A great deal of our knowledge, too, is communicated by 
17 



194 LECTURE XXII. 

the ear. Thus, we have pictures for the eye, and sound 
for the ear, and by looking upon the monument, and listen- 
ing to the interpreter of its symbols, we may comprehend 
and appreciate their significance. ^Bell rings.'] 



LECTURE XXIL 

EXODUS XXV, 17. 

GENTLEME2I — There is a central idea, in every (properly 
so called) science. There is a grand central root to every 
science. Take for example, the sciences of Geography 
and Astronomy. Now the root of the first is merely gee 
the earth; of the latter astron^ a star. Hence, the whole 
science of the earth, is founded m gee^ and that of the 
heavens in astron. These roots lie back of all terminology, 
hence, the importance of being inspired with their true 
significance. Adam was called upon to name every thing 
about him — no mean task, since, according to our philos- 
ophy, no man can give an appropriate name, unless he 
understands the differential characteristics and attributes 
of the object. We discover Adam's wisdom in the fact, 
that he made not a single mistake, inasmuch as they were 
all approbated by God, and, therefore, scientific. The in- 
fallible test to which Adam's correctness was submitted, 
shows that he must have had an extensive fund of knowl- 
edge, so far at least, as materiality is concerned. 

Now, this splendid structure — the tabernacle — which we 
are about to consider in detail, is one of the most impor- 
tant and significant of all studies. We have Solomon's 



LECTURE XXII. 195 

temple, as a consummation of the matter, but we have 
first the tent, already mentioned — adapted to a long jour- 
ney of forty years, in the Avilderness — which was the ru- 
dimental conception of all that was stereotyped in the 
Jewish temple. We take first, the central idea, as Moses 
gave it — the ark — which means chest, and may be of 
square or oblong figure. The furniture then of this in- 
nermost palace, speaking with reference to the three de- 
partments, to-wit : the outer court, the holy place, and the 
most holy place, was the central idea of the three depart- 
ments, which represented three states, called the state of 
nature^ the state of grace and the state of glory. The 
Christian religion, is the grand development of these three 
divisions. The outer court, therefore, was for the whole 
world. All humanity met there — a portion only congre- 
gated in the holy place, and a very select and compar- 
atively small portion, entered the sanctum sanctorum. 

Now no one can thoroughly understand and appreciate 
Christianity, who has not thoroughly mastered what we 
call the typography of it, presented here, in this beautiful 
and picturesque representation, whose position, intent and 
object, are all intimately related to Christianity. 

It was made to stand due East and West. In the outer 
court yard, of parallelogramic formation, there was first 
of all, the altar. Entering in at the door, the first object 
which arrested the attention, was a large brazen altar, with 
horns attached, and proper garniture, for burning with 
fire, the victims that were laid upon it. This is a strange 
idea, you may think, to bring a calf, a kid, or lamb — un- 
blemished — take the blood from its neck, and place it in a 
certain basin, for a certain purpose — and then to burn to 
ashes, the body of the victim upon the altar. But it is all 
significant, when viewed in relation to the remedial system. 



196 LECTURE XXII. 

But we must look particularly at the outer court before 
\Ye come to tlie sanctuary. Here then was the great bra- 
zen altar of burnt offering. Next to this was water, in a 
large urn — Loutron — now called in our language laver. 
This vessel of water, stood on the right side of the door 
as you entered. A blood offering was presented every 
morning and evening, and beyond this w\as the laver, where 
the priests washed their hands, and their persons if nec- 
essary, free from every speck of blood wdiich might be on 
them, before entering into the holy place. We must have 
all these matters fxxed in our minds, as well as their posi- 
tion, before we are prepared to appreciate, the intent and 
meaning of the institution; and the objects to be accom- 
plished by it. 

It is next to be remembered, that the fire on the altar, 
was perpetual. It Avas kindled first of all by God himself. 
This gave it significance. It was not an artistic fire, 
kindled by the hand of man; but was first adjusted within 
our knowledge, at the sacrifices offered by Cain and Abel. 
There stood Abel and Cain, by their respective altars — the 
one with a blood ofi'ering, the other with the first fruits of 
the soil. We remember how God accepted the offering of 
Abel, and left Cain's upon the altar. Why was this? We 
have already enlarged upon this subject, by showing that 
blood underlies the whole system of redemption, and that 
Abel by faith, ofi'ered a better — a more acceptable sacri- 
fice than Cain, inasmuch as it was a bloody sacrifice, while 
his brother's w^as bloodless. No thank ofi*ering, not based 
on faith, ever was, or ever can be accepted by God. This 
is the idea — w^ithout the shedding of blood there is no re- 
ligion, either in the patriarchal, the Jewish, or the Chris- 
tian age. This great principle, is stereotyped, through- 
out the Old and New Testaments, and in the Epistle of 



LECTURE xxir. 197 

Paul to the Hebrews, we liave the subject discussed, with 
that infallible knowledge, given by God to that remarkable 
man. But we must consider the tabernacle with reference 
to its garniture. The altar stands between the heavens 
and the earth. It occupies a mediatorial position, between 
heaven and earth. Nothing placed upon the earth, was 
acceptable to Grod."^ It was placed sufficiently high, to be 
w^ithin the reach of man, and was consecrated to burnt 
offerings, presented to the Lord. 

The fire on the altar first came down from God, and is 
to be considered the hand of God. It was a perpetual 
fire, kept on the altar from day to day, from week to week, 
from year to year. It was the duty of every high priest, 
during his administration, to attend to the altar, and take 
care of the fire, which was perpetual for hundreds of years. 
There was no admission to the altar, except by blood, and 
then water. After the priest had performed his duties at 
the altar, he w^ashed in the loutron. For this reason, the 
Apostle Paul has called the Christian Baptism a washing — 
the washing of the New Institution. We, then, have the 
altar, the laver, the blood and the water. 

Now% who frequented the outer court ? Was it a select 
class, or those called the Israelites, that w^ere allowed to 
stand there ? We answ^er, all men, w^hether Jew or Gen- 
tile, had a right to stand in the outer court, and the whole 
nation had the rights and privileges pertaining to that 

^This is a significant fact. When Adam fell i\\Q ground was 
cursed for his sake, and since then, no offering placed upon the earth 
is acceptable to God. The word Hagios — translated holy — is derived 
from the Greek privative a — which means separation from — and (^ee, 
the earth. Hence, the primary meaning of holiness to the Lord is 
separation from the earth — lifting the affections above earthly things, 
and placing them on God. M. 



198 LECTURE XXII. 

court ; but there were other courts — the holy places — 
where only certain classes were admitted. The outer court 
was free to the whole nation, but the priest alone served in 
the sanctuary ; and before he could do this it was neces- 
sary to make the offering, and wash himself in the laver, 
at the entrance of the outer court. Having entered the 
sanctuary, what persons do we find in the first room ? 
Every part of the building was designed to be symbolical 
of some thing. The priest could go, after the preparation 
described, into the holy place, to worship. The holiest 
was accessible to the high priest only once a year ; and this 
was necessary to consummate the purposes of the institu- 
tion. The high priest must have admission into the divine 
presence, and in the holiest place there was constantly a 
splendid manifestation of the divine presence. 

Whenever the high priest appeared in the holy of ho- 
lies, he bore on one shoulder six names, and on the other 
shoulder six names, of the twelve tribes of Israel ; and 
upon his breastplate were four row^s of three names each, 
representing, as did those on his shoulders, the twelve 
tribes of Israel. 

We omitted to remark, while on the subject of the blood- 
sacrifice, that the " life is in the blood" — the blood is the 
scabbard of life, and that the offering of blood was the 
offering of life. 

In treating of any topic we generally take a survey of 
the subject-matter. We look over a plantation, standing 
on some commanding point, and thus become acquainted 
with its outlines. So with our present subject, w^e circum- 
navigate the whole area, and look at its general plan, be- 
fore we enter into its minute details. But the grand idea 
underlies all these. The figures embodied in this struc- 
ture are all pictures, like the black letters of the printed 



LECTURE XXII. 199 

page before us, ^vhicli constitute the fountain of our intel- 
lectual light. Just so with spiritual light, coming from 
the blood. There is an analogy here. 

In reference to blood as a sin-offering — an offering to 
expiate the sin of man, we have to say, that it is an insti- 
tution which never could have occurred to the human 
mind by a priori operation. It must have originated, 
therefore, in the Divine Mind, and thence permeated the 
mind and heart of man. 

We must next look at these symbols, in order to under- 
stand the details of this institution. By our circumlocu- 
tion, we will ferret out the secret of the building. We 
shall find every thing perfectly adapted to its purpose — 
first the blood, second the water, and third the bread of 
life. All these arrangements are made in the Divine 
wisdom. We have access to the first court, then we come 
to the inner court, and finally are granted admission into 
the Divine presence, and that is the acme, the culmina- 
tion, beyond which the human mind has nothing to desire. 

We have, gentlemen, in this remarkable institution, all 
that enters into the lattitude and longitude of the whole 
Bible. {Bell rings) 



200 LECTURE xxiir. 

LECTURE XXIII. 

EXODUS XXVI. 

Gentlemen — Much has been read and spoken in regard 
to order. All know that God is a God of order, but the 
best lesson ever read upon that important topic, is given 
in the construction of this edifice — this mystic edifice — 
every item of which is a type. Just as metallic type, in 
our day, are used for the purpose of communicating knowl- 
edge to mankind, so God has cast a font of type, in 
which, when set up in their proper places, and arranged 
according to the Divine economy exhibited in them, we are 
enabled to read the whole form of the remedial system. 

We have said that Moses was a great type-founder. 
We now add that he had the best education of any man on 
earth, having been twice forty days under the teaching of 
God. He had a perfect pattern of every thing. He was 
not left to vague and unprecise descriptions, but so care- 
ful was the Almighty Architect to have his design per- 
fectly accomplished, that as Moses descended from the 
mount, He charged him, saying, '^ See that thou make all 
things according to the pattern wliich I showed thee in 
the mount." Hence, there was not a blur or blot — not a 
single aberation from the exact image which he had re- 
ceived of this superlative palace. We have seen already 
that the object of Deity was to rescue man, to redeem 
him, which has been, and is, and ever will be, the noblest 
work in the universe. 

Gentlemen, w^hen w^e look at the planet on which we 
live — look at it geographically and geologically, or in any 
other way in which science can penetrate its mysteries — 
we find it to be a great storehouse. We dig up its surface 



LECTURE XXIII. 201 

and find that the elements of every thing animate or inan- 
imate are there. These things were all allotted and located 
in the best conceivable form, and for what purpose, pray ? 
Why is it that every climate does not produce the same 
things? Why have we to dive into the depths of ocean, 
or tunnel the towering mountains, in quest of precious 
metals and sparkling gems? Why is it so ? These are 
great questions to those who are inquisitive as to the 
works of God, and when answered will redound to His 
glory. The earth has a skin, as has man. That skin is 
the soil, which is covered with the sweetest of all colors — 
made to suit the eye of man. There is no color in the 
whole range of the floral kingdom, that affords as much 
pleasure to the eye of man as does nature's livery — 
green. Every thing is just as it should be— just as it 
was intended to be. All the water and all the earth were 
measured and weighed ; and nothing was found w^anting — 
nay, so perfect is nature that one single grain of addi- 
tional matter might, for what we know, throw the whole 
universe out of equipoise. One single ounce abstracted 
might convulse the system — throw it into utter confusion. 
Gentlemen, there is a natural desire on the part of man 
to rise higher and higher. We do not mean to create new 
mind or matter. There is nothing more to create; but 
the capacity of man for the acquisition of knowledge has 
never been ascertained. He has one idea, which is the 
differential one, that ought always to be present to his 
mind. As we have repeatedly said, the grand distinguish- 
ing attribute of man is not perpendicularity of position 
on the earth, nor yet the possession of external and inter- 
nal beauty. But it is the capacity and power to appre- 
ciate a moral idea. That power you can not impart to any 
other creature on earth. There is nothing that flies in the 



202 LECTUKE XXIII. 

air, swims in the water, or treads the face of earth, that 
can be taught to appreciate a moral relation or obligation. 
Hence, man, mortal, erring man, stands pre-eminently 
above all creation beside. This is the glory of man. 
Now, this whole book was gotten up for the express pur- 
pose of impressing upon man a true appreciation of his 
moral relations. They could never have been taught him 
in any other way, under the conditions of his being ; for, 
mark it, tahat God does is best. There is, in all his works, 
a perfect adaptation of means to ends ; consequently, 
every thing in the material universe is a prodigy. There 
are more than ten thousand different items entering into 
the constituency of man, and every one, though distinct 
in itself, marvelously and harmoniously blended into one 
grand and wonderful whole. Behold his eyebrow, as its 
wonders are revealed by the microscope ! How wonder- 
fully it is adapted to shield the sensitive organ of vision 
from injury. How greatly it surpasses all the artistic ma- 
chinery of man's invention ; and yet there is not a single 
hair in that eyebrow which is not itself a prodigy. Is it 
not a wonderful indication of divine wisdom? Now, we 
should never have thought of building a tabernacle like 
this, independent of supernatural instruction. Hence, it 
required a programme, as God could not superintend it, 
physically or metaphysically. It, therefore, became ex- 
pedient that he should give a perfect model of every por- 
tion of it, and that to Moses, who was, above all other 
men, possessed of the greatest natural endowments, the 
the finest constitution, aud the most eminent acquired fit- 
ness, to take charge of the undertaking. Think of a man 
living to be one hundred and twenty years old without 
losing a single power of mind or bodj^ ! He was as young 
in his last days as in his earliest maturity. He was the 



LECTURE xxiri. 203 

man for the place. So perfectly was he admired and con- 
fided in by the people, that it is truly remarkable that God 
should bury him, himself, where no man could ever find 
his remains. He interred Mos.es in the earth, but no 
mortal man knows where. Moses has not only been hon- 
ored as the meekest man of earth, but no man has risen 
out of humanity with whom God spake face to face, for 
days and days, as he did with Moses. 

We are greatly indebted to the Author of all Good for 
the detailed account given here of this sanctuary, w^hich 
was to be a programme, a typical figure of every item that 
enters into the scheme of the redemption of man. 

This mystic palace, whose architect was God. is the 
study of all studies, to interest the man of taste, even if 
he has no religious feelings. There is a myriad of inter- 
esting facts in the arrangement of the whole edifice. 

All the precious metals, are brought together here — all 
the gems of costly price, are here collated, and no man 
on earth was ever so richly and gorgeously dressed, as 
Aaron, the brother of Moses, when at the altar. He had 
a splendid cap, beautifully engraven with clear capital let- 
ters of marvelous significancy, and richly ornamented 
with fine jewels, and others engraved with the names of 
the twelve tribes both upon the shoulders and breast, were 
representative and symbolic of the great ideas in harmony 
with the building of the tabernacle. 

The importance of this structure, may be estimated 
from the fact, that there is no comparison to be instituted, 
between the programme and history of the building, and 
the account given of the whole original creation — the six 
day's labor of God. We read the latter in a single chap- 
ter ; but in the details of the tabernacle, we have chapter 



204 LECTURE XXIV. 

after chapter, and book after book, and then we have a 
recapitulation of the whole, in the book of Deuteronomy.* 
{Bell rings?) 



LECTURE XXIV. 



Gentlemen — Aaron, who occupies so important a posi- 
tion in the w^orship of the tabernacle, is a mystic sort of 
personage as we use the word mystic, which comprehends 
what is merely shadowed before us. The black letters be- 

^ The following minute description of the Tabernacle will assist 
the reader in forming a proper conception of this wonderful and 
significant type : 

I. "The structure of the tabernacle; which was made accord- 
ing to the copy, model, or pattern, minutely given to Moses in the 
mount by Jehovah himself, with a strict charge to be very exact in 
executing the heavenly plan. Exod. xxv, 40; xxxvi, L Bezaleel 
and Aholiab were inspired by the Spirit of God, to construct this 
holy tabernacle according to the Divine plan. We notice, 

1. "The court within which the tabernacle stood. 

" Its length was one hundred and seventy five feet, and its breadth 
eighty-seven feet. This court had thirty pillars, at the distance 
of eight and a half feet from each other, and a curtain fastened 
from one pillar to the other. The entrance was from the east side, 
through a curtain. Into this court the whole nation was permitted 
to enter. David, perhaps, alluded to it when he said: 'Enter into 
his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise.' Ps. c, 
4. This court was surrounded with another in Solomon's temple, 
and called the Court of the Gentiles. 

"The tabernacle was fifty-five feet long, eighteen feet broad, and 
eighteen feet high. It was divided into two apartments. The first 



LECTURE XXIV. 205 

fore us would be mystic, as indicative of the sounds of 
the human voice, were it not for the (so called) conven- 
tional agreement as to their significance, which is an ar- 
bitrary arrangement for the convenience of mankind. 

There is a beautiful typography instituted in language, 
by Him who first taught man to speak. 

In this book we have a world past, and a world to 

is called 'the first tabernacle,' and 'the sanctuary,' and was thirty- 
six feet long. The second apartment is called 'the second taberna- 
cle,' or 'the most holy place;' and was eighteen feet square. The 
entrance from the court to the tabernacle was on the east side, 
through a vail; and the entrance from the sanctuary to the most 
holy place was also through a vail, which was rent at the death of 
Christ. Into the first tabernacle none but those of the tribe of 
Levi were permitted to enter; and into" the most holy place none 
was allowed to enter except the high priest, and that only on the day 
of atonement. We proceed to consider, 

II. '^ The most remarkable utensils or contents of the dififerent 
apartments. 

" First. Between the court and the tabernacle stood, 

1. " A vessel called the ^ brazen- laver,' in which the priests washed 
their hands and feet^ whenever they went to offer sacrifices, or go 
into the tabernacle, to signify their natural impurity and unworthi- 
ness, and their need of being washed with the blood and Spirit of 
Christ. And although the priests were washed at their consecra- 
tion, yet they were to wash their hands and feet every time they offi- 
ciated, on pain of death, intimating the continual guilt they con- 
tracted in their daily employments and converse in the world. 
Exod. XXX, 17--22. Solomon made a molten sea, of great capacity, 
and ten lavers. 1 Kings vii, 26 ; 2 Chron. iv, 5. 

2. "Next to it was the brazen altar, of burnt-offerings, which it 
both supported and sanctified. It was nine feet square, and five and 
a half feet high. Upon this altar was a square grate, on which was 
the fire, first kindled miraculously, and kept perpetually burning. 
On the corners of this altar were horns of shittim wood overlaid 
with brass, which prevented the victims from falling off, and to these 



206 LECTURE XXIV. 

come, presented in their typography. When we speak 
of the world to come, we do not use the word '' world ^' 
merely in the sense of age. The term ^' world" is fre- 
quently confounded with the term, earth. A man going 
around the earth, is not going around the world, by any 
means. The words cosmos and gee^ are not more different, 
than the meanings they convey. This book, however, 

they were sometimes bound, when about to be sacrificed. Exod. 
xxvii, 1--8; Lev. ix, 24. We now enter, 
"Secondly: The first tabernacle. 

1. "On the left side we behold the great golden candlestick, the 
richest ornament of the tabernacle. 

" It had three branches on the one side of the stem, and three on 
the other side, and at the top of each branch, and on the stem, was a 
lamp. It was the priest's duty to trim these lamps, morning and 
evening. This was a most useful, as well as a most ornamental, 
utensil in a room which had no windows. 

2. "At the right hand stood the table of shew-bread, three and a 
half feet long, one foot broad, and two and a half feet high. Upon 
this table lay twelve loaves, six on a pile. These were changed 
every Sabbath day, and the old bread belonged to the priests. 

3. "Near to the vail of the most holy place stood the altar of in- 
cense overlaid with gold, one and three quarter feet square and 
three and a half feet high. On this table the incense was burnt 
morning and evening. Exod. xxx, 1--10. This incense of spice was 
very necessary to remove the ill odors from the sanctuary occasioned 
by the sacrifices, and to denote the acceptableness of the services of 
the sanctuary before God. 

^' We now pass, 

"Thirdly: Through the rent vail, into the most holy place. 
Here we behold the mysterious and the most significant fixture^ the 
'ark of the testimony,' and which was also called 'the ark of the 
covenant.' Exod. xxv, 22; Joshua iv, 7. It was four and a half 
feet long, two and three quarters broad, and two and three quarters 
feet high. None but the priests were permitted to touch it, and only 
the Kohathites, a part of the sacerdotal family, were allowed to 



LECTURE XXIV. 207 

spans the arch of time, past and to come ; but it does not 
span the Geography of Earth. It is an adumbration of 
the divine purposes in reference to man. This is a capi- 
tal and diflferential idea, that while it rests upon the past, 
it spans the eternal future ; hence, time present is a mere 
isthmus, stretching between two continents. It is a mere 
connective, between the past and future. 

Now, as there can be nothing known, except through 
the known, we must have a new font of type. Moses was 
the first man who received them. A grand ladder, com- 
posed of shining angels, reaching from one to another, 
extended from Heaven to Mount Sinai ; and upon this 
splendid monumental ladder, the stones were carried, from 
Moses to the Lord, who engraved upon them, with his 
own hand, the whole category of the relations between 
God and man, and between man and man ; and then re- 
turned them to Moses. But, for the good of the world, 
the precious tables were broken. When Moses came 
down from the mount, after an absence of forty days, he 
was so overwhelmed w4th distress, by the crime of Aaron, 

carry it. Hence Uzzah was punished with death for touching it 
2 Sam. vi, 7. Within, or before the ark were deposited the golden 
pot of manna and Aaron's rod that budded. Heb. ix, 4. The ta- 
bles of the law, on which the ten commandments were engraven, 
were deposited within the ark. 

" The top of this ark was covered by a lid of solid gold, and is called 
'the mercy seat,' or 'propitiation." On each side of the lid were 
figures called cherubim, their faces toward each other; and both of 
them wdth their heads somewhat inclined as looking down upon, 
contemplating, and admiring the 'mysteries' typified by the ark 
and mercy seat on which they stood. Their outstretched wings 
covered the whole mercy seat," — Freys Scripture Types^ vol. 1, 
pp. 143-6. 



208 LECTURE XXIV. 

and the idolatry of the people, that he let the tables fall 
from his hands and they were broken. This gave rise to 
a second edition — being a perfect copy, in every, even the 
minutest point, of all that the first contained. Hence, we 
have twice had the handwriting of God, containing his 
laws to man, and with it, we have a font of type, to ex- 
plain them to the world. And, in order to enable us to 
understand the law, we have line upon line, and lesson 
upon lesson, written and rewritten in this book. 

We hg-ve said, gentlemen, and now reiterate it, that no 
man can understand the Christian religion, who does not 
understand the Jewish religion. 

The summum honum of all religion, is to bring parties 
at variance, into harmonious co-operation. Hence, in all 
religions, no matter what may be their origin — whether 
you call them Pagan, Mahometan, Jewish, or Christian, 
this idea, in some form, underlies them all. It presup- 
poses an alienation, between God and man ; and religion, 
comprehends the means of reconciliation and union. We 
care not by what name you call it, whether Calvinistic or 
Arminian — Trinitarian or Unitarian, if its philosophy fail 
to accomplish this great and fundamental object, it can 
lay no just claims to the name — religion.* 

■^ The foregoing is rather an abstract than a report of the lecture 
delivered this morning. President Campbell spoke but a short time, 
and most of that was occupied in reiterating, and impressing upon 
the minds of students what he had already said, upon the subject 
of the tabernacle. — Reporter. 



LECTURE XXV. 209 

LECTURE XXV. 



EXODUS XXXYIIL 



[Several questions were handed Mr. Campbell by stu- 
dents this morning, among which, he noticed one in ref- 
erence to circumcision, and another inquiring as to the 
significance of the golden candlesticks. We report a few 
words that he said concerning circumcision, as they will 
seem to introduce the subject proper of the Lecture — 
Rep.] 

Gentlemen — The word '^circumcision," from circuniy 
around, and ccedo^ to cut, means simply, cutting round 
about. It was what we call a type. Perhaps this word 
may not now be understood, as we use it; but you know, 
every letter in the English Alphabet, is called a type — ^ 
types of the sounds of the human voice, made so by ar- 
tistic arrangement. There is no similarity between the 
letter C, and the sound represented by it, but the vowel 
sound of 0, is a very beautiful representation. All the 
efforts of the Greeks and others, to make the letters, rep- 
resent the sounds, were in vain, and it is now too late to 
form a new Alphabet. There never was a convention, 
called or assembled, for such a purpose, within our knowl- 
edge ; and, therefore, the use of the word " conventional/^ 
in reference to this subject, is merely a metaphorical ex- 
pression. An agreement to spell words, in a particular 
way, may be properly called conventional. God first spoke 
to man, and that is proof positive that language, is a rev- 
elation — in other words that God is the Author of lan- 
guage. We noticed this fact in the case of Adam, while 

yet in the school of God, and before he gave names to the 
18 



210 LECTURE XXV. 

animals, round about him. And we presume to say, that 
his names, were not arbitrary any more than biped, quad- 
ruped and multiped, though the representative character 
of names is partially artistic. 

The Divine mind, gave to man a typography of religion. 
It was to give to man supernatural vision — to introduce 
him into the sanctum sanctorum of the universe, and there 
to give him an embodiment, in a form adapted to his reason, 
of all the elements, that entered into the constituency of 
religion. We have before observed, that the etymology 
of ''religion," indicates a new institution. There is no 
religion in heaven, nor is there anj^ need of it there. Yet, 
you often hear our pulpits talking about religion in heaven. 
There is no such thing. Why? Because there are no 
parties there to reconcile. All is harmony. It is only 
necessary in a state of revolt or alienation. Man is to be 
reconciled to God, and when done, it is done. What is 
pure religion, but reconciliation, between alienated man, 
and insulted God? Clear and patent just here, is the 
language of the Apostle, when he says, '' I beseech you 
in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." This is re- 
ligion — the grand idea. If we are reconciled to God, He 
is to us. Hence, when Paul speaks to the Gentiles on this 
subject, he uses the words " to-wit — " the only time they 
are used by him in the Bible — as much as to saj^, I will 
explain to you what it means ; to-w^it: ''God was in Christ, 
reconciling man to himself." The intent and purpose of 
religion, w^as to bring man out of a state of anarchy and 
revolt, to a state of order and friendship with God. All 
other considerations in regard to religion, are merely sec- 
ondary matters. " We beseech you — be ye reconciled to 
God." What does it mean? Is the whole Christian re- 
ligion in one short period ? God was in Christ, and he was 



LECTURE XXV. 211 

to minister what? He was to reconcile us to God, and 
make it honorable in God, to forgive us. Two grand ideas 
embody it all — first, to be reconciled — secondly, to glorify 
God. 

When we look at the tabernacle, the grand divisions 
first arrest our attention : 1st, the outer court — the natural 
state. 2nd, the holy place — the state of grace. 3d, the 
most holy — the state of glory. Hence, the first inclosure 
was for the whole world — the Jew, the Gentile, the Sama- 
ritan, etc., when once naturalized. The holy place was for 
the priest, and the third and last, the holiest of all, rep- 
resented heaven, and taken altogether, they present a 
full-orbed view, of the three estates of man. 

The perpetual fire kept up by the priests, was not merely 
to consume the flesh, thrown upon the altar ; but it was a 
symbol of that consumption, which shall come upon those, 
w^ho refuse to be reconciled to God, through his Son Jesus 
Christ. And as the substitutive symbols of reconciliation, 
the lamb, the kid, the ox, etc., were- consumed by fire, 
there was an atonement, which in the Anglo-Saxon means 
to make at one. The atonement was the eifect, but the 
material was called the sacrifice. There was no atonement, 
but through blood, and from this fact we learn the signifi- 
cance of the expression, ''blood is the scabbard of life.^' 
At one was to be brought about, by blood; and there could 
be no reconciliation to God, save through death. 

There w^ere no rays of the sun, no glimmering of the 
pale moon, and no twinkling light of the stars in the holy 
room. It was made impervious to the light ; hence, the 
necessity of artificial light, and this was the purpose of 
the golden candlesticks. When the priest enters, he sees 
a handsome table with the bread of life upon it, and the 
light of life and the water of life, all of which were hap- 



212 LECTURE XXV. 

pily represented in the furniture and appointments of this 
room. There was a beautiful symbol of what we call the 
light of reconciliation — called the light of life in the Holy 
Scriptures. Here we have the incense burning, while the 
worshiper is in communion with God ; and this is the state 
of the true church now — communion with God. 

Observe we have pictures in the innermost place. These 
were of beautiful form, and cunning work, showing that, 
the intercourse between heaven and earth, was conducted 
by special arrangement through angels. Angel is purely 
an official name, and means a messenger ; and, therefore, 
. they are ministering spirits, that is, servants of Christ — 
messengers to wait upon him. Hence, in the holiest place 
there were pictures of angels, who were always present 
there. 

There is a curious passage in the New Testament, 
which we pause to notice here, made by the Apostle Paul, 
concerning the ladies, and their dress. They were not 
allowed to go unvailed into the primitive church. This 
becafiae a topic of so much importance that Paul took no- 
tice of it in his writings. They were not to appear at 
worship without vails over their faces ; for there were 
spies always present to see if any thing was done calcu- 
lated to engender strife with Cesar. These spies came to 
observe their worship, hence it became necessary that the 
ladies should wear vails, to screen their faces from the 
stare of loungers and rude Gentiles, who frequented the 
churches. 

In this building, we are looking at humanity in its pro- 
gress from nature, through grace, to glory. The Laver and 
Altar are the two grand principles of the remedial system. 
Blood takes away the guilt, and water takes away the 
stain — blood for the criminality, water for the pollution. 



LECTUllE XXV. 213 

Baptism is not symbolic of cleansing, because cleansing 
is itself a symbol, and we can not have a symbol of a 
symbol, but we can have a type. 

Onomatopoeia^ a rhetorical Greek figure, gave birth to 
pronunciation, expressive of the connection that may 
exist between the objective and subjective ideas. Now, 
any person may go to the water, and strike it with almost 
any thing having a flat surface, producing the sound hap ; 
or with the edge and produce the sound dip. This illus- 
trates the use of the Greek onomatopoeia. It was a figure 
of high esteem, and much used in the Roman and other 
tongues, and so it is now in all countries. 

" Onomatopaeia, a name of sound 
By which the meaning will be found." 

Hence, we have bap, dip and plunge. We cast a large 
stone into the water, and it says plunge^ almost as plainly 
as we can speak it. Thus, gentlemen, you find in the 
rhetorical and logical use of this terminology the rule that 
makes the eye help the ear, and the ear help the eye — the 
two great media of knowledo;e to man. 

The light in the outer room of the tabernacle was alto- 
gether artistic. The holiest of all was separated from the 
other compartments by curtains, through which the high 
priest entered to the throne of grace. Here are the pic- 
tures of angels. Hence, the holiest of all was a type of 
Heaven, w^here God is seen and worshiped in his imme- 
diate presence ; hence, angels, ministering spirits, are sent 
from the divine presence to the church. They are minis- 
ters of the Divine government, as men are ministers of 
the human governments, which they serve. There are vast 
numbers of angels in the service of God. We are told 
that God makes the winds his angels, and his ministers 
flames of fire. The lightning is a special minister in the 



214 LECTURE XXV 

service of God, and by such instrumentalities He executes 
his wrath and judgments ; hence they are called ministers, 
under the direction of the Great Head over all. Under 
Christ are orders and ranks throughout the universe. We 
are told by Paul, that angels, kingdoms, principalities, etc., 
are put under the control of the Son of God. What a 
grand and glorious ofBce is that of Supreme Ruler of the 
universe. Before Christ gave up his earthly office he con- 
tinued to educate his disciples, in the peripatetic school. 
He took them with him, into the mountains, through the 
plains, and over the waters, and continued to instruct 
them, in this manner, for the space of three and a half 
years (more or less), before He gave them permission to 
teach. Christ was an embodiment of exousia — the legisla- 
tive, the judicial and executive powers were all in his 
hands — three divisions essential to all well-organized so- 
ciety. He was autocratic in this respect — all authority in 
heaven and earth being placed in his hands. Here, then, 
gentlemen — think of it ! — we have a man, the Son of God 
and the Son of Man, rising from a lowly and humble con- 
dition to the highest peak within the mental contempla- 
tion of humanity — possessing paramount authority over 
the entire universe, having angels, authorities and princi- 
palities subject to him. {Bell rings,) 



LECTURE XXVI. 215 



LECTURE XXVI. 

EXODUS XXXVIII, 

[The class again read the thirty- eighth chapter of Ex- 
odus. Owing to the pressure of other engagements, 
President Campbell spoke but a few moments this morn- 
ing, and barely referred to the chapter read.] 

Gentlemen — No voice on earth is so various in sound 
as is the human voice. Among a thousand acquaintances 
you readily recognize each one, by the voice alone. The 
wild beasts of the forest, as well as all the varieties of do- 
mestic animals, have sounds and intonations peculiar to 
the species, but rarely to the individual. The lion has the 
lion's voice, the tiger the tiger's, and so Avith the horse 
and the ox. The songsters of the grove rejoice in spring 
time, with a remarkable harmony and homogeniety of mu- 
sical sounds ; yet all these have a language. We call it 
language, because it has significance among themselves, 
and is promptly understood by them. No one ^vell read 
in natural history need be told that certain species of birds 
and animals place guards or sentinels around their places 
of resort or abode, to give signals upon the approach of 
danger. This is a remarkable attribute, and indicates an 
approach to the wisdom and understanding of man. Such 
analogies permeate the entire scale of being. There is 
also a remarkable adaptation of the different grades of 
animate being to the requirements of their respective con- 
ditions. There is an adaptation to climates and atmos- 
pheres, as caused by the revolutions and changes of our 
planetary system, and if w^e look into the rivers, seas and 
oceans we shall discover the same remarkable adaptation 



216 LECTURE XXVI. 

of their different tenantries. We can not perceive with 
the naked eye the peculiarities and beauties of atomic na- 
ture, much less discover the minute and perfect forms of 
living things, revealed by the microscope. Indeed, we 
may say, with entire truth, that the atomic wonders of 
creation, animate and inanimate, have scarcely been pen- 
etrated by the eye of science ; yet, from the millions of 
animalculge, up to man, through all the grades of being, we 
have indubitable proofs of the existence of systems and 
orders, until we know that the universe is a system of sys- 
tems, and that there is a law belonging to each, and a law 
for the whole. 

Now, man stands at the head of creation, and is a com- 
bination of all the forms of life, within himself. As be- 
fore remarked, he has animal, intellectual, moral, and 
spiritual life, and these are the bases of the qualities of 
humanity — the capacities by which he may distinguish 
and regard his moral relations and rise to a higher sphere 
of enjoyment; and certainly there is no condition so ele- 
vating, so purifying, so ennobling, as religious commu- 
nion. 

We are aware, that there are men in society, who have 
no admiration for religious principle, no taste for its du- 
ties ; but this indicates an alienation so perfectly irra- 
tional, as to amount to an intellectual as well as moral 
aberration. No metephor can portray a man, who fights 
against his benefactor, who raises his puny arm in rebel- 
lion against the wholesome and wise decrees of his Maker, 
and defies his infinite power. We have, in the calendar 
of crimes, those known as patricide, and matricide, calling 
upon their perpetrators, the severest punishments of hu- 
man and divine law ; but neither of these is a crime, as 
heinous as rebellion against God — all-glorious in his at- 



LECTURE XXVIL 217 

tributes, all-beneficent in his government — the Creator 
and the Friend of man. 

Now, to develop man, in harmony with his origin, his 
duties, and his destiny, as taught by the sacred volume, is 
the grand object of its promulgation in all its depart- 
ments, and we have the most beautiful and apposite typo- 
graphy in this divinely appointed structure — the taberna- 
cle, adapted to the inquisitiveness of human nature, and 
giving to man, in bold relief, an unmistakable outline, of 
all that pertains to the religious institution. 

Two of the most important personages in history 
sprang from the same ancestry — Moses and Aaron. Mo- 
ses was the law, but Aaron was more ; he was the law 
and gospel. No man can thoroughly comprehend the 
remedial system, who has not been educated by Moses — 
the greatest of educators. {Bell rings) 



LECTURE XXVII. 



Gentlemen — [When we say that every gentleman 
ought to go to church, we do not mean your church, or 
my church (to use the popular phraseology), but that 
every gentleman should attend the public worship of the 
Lord, on the Lord's day, somewhere ; for this is an indis- 
pensable means of education in every civilized country.] 

The world's civilization, is founded on the great idea of 

love — which at the same time is the tie between God and 

man. We are nowhere commanded to love angels, but to 

love God and our fellow-men. We may love what we 
19 



218 LECTURE XXVII. 

know of angels ; but we have no revelation which makes 
it incumbent on us to do so. Why ? We answer, that it 
is the distinguishing characteristic of the Bible, that it 
communicates only what we can communicate and enjoy. 
It reveals to man, how he came into existence, what he is 
now, and what he must be hereafter, and furnishes him 
with a knowledge of himself, which he could not possibly 
derive from any other source. Religion is a commemora- 
tive institution. There never was a religion without a 
rite, in the ancient and original sense ; but the word has 
been so travestied, that we scarcely ever speak it. We 
have nothing of the kind indicated by the present cor- 
rupted signification of the word rite, either in the Old or 
New Testament. They have to do with facts. Histori- 
cally and prophetically, they present facts, including the 
destiny and relations of man. Now, these facts are prop- 
erly estimated in the new system of reasoning — which 
is the only reasonable reasoning — being neither a priori 
nor a posteriori,'^ We have facts here and not theories; 
hence, we hold that speculative systems of religion, 
stand upon no foundation at all. 

Protestantism, has given an impetus to the world, 
every where, both politically and religiously. Look at 
the little island of Great Britain ! — holding the destinies 
of both Asia and Africa in her hands ; indeed, I might 
say, with some degree of truth, of all Europe. An 
island containing a few millions of inhabitants, swaying 

■^ The Inductive or Baconian method of reasoning is the one here 
referred to. And, if this method was applied to the study of the 
Scriptures, as it has been to Science, there might be more unity 
among those who are the friends of Jesus. Theories must give 
place to facts ^ opinions to faith^ and love of party to love of the 
truths and then we may hope for Christian union. 



LECTURE XXVII. 219 

the scepter — not formally but really — of half the globe, 
is a strange spectacle. She sometimes holds in abeyance 
the armies of the Eastern world! Whence this power? 
How does this come to pass ? We hold that it is her Pro- 
testantism, in the proper, not the factitious sense of the 
word, that gives her this power — that kind of Protestant- 
ism, that protests against the encroachment upon the 
rights of man — against usurpations of power which ought 
not to belong to kings or potentates. 

It is impossible to teach man without types, conse- 
quently we have types for the ear and the eye. 

A word is but a type, and in order to understand man 
we must study typography all our life. We never study 
essence. We can not study the essence of any thing. 
' Tis true, we have the word in the materialities, but it is 
figurative. No man can study an abstract idea. Who has 
done it ? Nobody. The word esse, to be, is absolute, and 
while there is an entity, an essence, a to be, in every 
thing, no man can apprehend or comprehend it, further 
than it is manifested by outward signs or symbols ; hence, 
we see the value and importance of the symbols employed 
here, to assist us in the study of man as he was, and is, 
and must be hereafter. 

We remark further, that the distinguishing characteris- 
tics of the Bible were impressed by infinite wisdom, for a 
purpose. The study of these symbols is just as neces- 
sary to the study of humanity and divinity, as the study 
of the vowels and consonants, composing our alphabet, is 
to the knowledge of what is called literature. They were 
not instituted without cause, or without significance.^ 



"^ Nothing more certainly assures to us the truth of the Bible than 
its splendid system of types. Not only because we have the ante- 



220 LECTURE XXVII. 

They came to man through Moses, who was forty years a 
shepherd, forty years an exile, and forty years a king. He 
was a minister of God, to give laws to the Jewish people, 
and a record to the world of history, from the beginning 
of time — antedating all writers, Greek or Persian, or of 
any nation of antiquity. 

It was impossible to conununicate to man any idea of a 
spirit, of a spiritual religion, or of a spiritual universe, in 
any other way than by the method adopted by Moses, or 
rather by that spirit that inspired him. 

All the idols of the ancients — no matter how precious 
the material of which they were made — were only embodi- 
ments of ideas. They could not have believed that an 
image made by man could possibly be greater than man 
himself. Of all stupidity exhibited by the superstition 
or ignorance of man, none surpasses that exhibited in 
taking a knife, a chisel, or other implement, and carving 
or casting out of wood, stone or metal an image of aiiy 
thing on earth, or in heaven, and afterward falling down 
upon his knees to worship it, saying, " Thou art my God." 
We may search among the records of antiquity, or the 
history of the modern world, in vain, to find any thing 
more derogatory, more degrading, more unhumanizing 

types corresponding, but because the whole system is in perfect 
harmony with the development of humanity at the time these types 
were cast. These embrace the simple elementary lessons of religion, 
and were just what was necessary at that age of the world. A sys- 
tem of religion less sensuous than the Jewish would not have been at 
all suitable. Man had to be gradually prepared, through these ma- 
terial representations^ for that higher and more spiritual worship — 
the religion of Christ. The law of progress is first that which is 
natural, and afterward that which is spiritual. 1 Cor. xv, 46. 

M. 



LECTURE XXVII. 221 

than this. For any being in the universe to Avorship any 
thing save his Creator^ the Living and True God, is de- 
rogatory to both himself and God, in the highest concep- 
tion of the term. 

God is as much anywhere as everywhere — he is ubiqui- 
tous ; hence, it has been beautifully said, " We live, and 
move, and have our being in Him," and to Him is our 
worship due. 

No man rises to a full appreciation of spirit. He does 
not know his own spirit. If the great Newton himself 
were upon the earth, and I should ask him, how is it that 
our train of spiritual associations lives ? why it is that a 
glance of the eye in the air in one direction, brings up 
one train of thought, and another glance in another direc- 
tion brings up another and entirely different train of 
thought — he could not answer the question, if it would 
save his soul. Our spirits are mysteries to us, through 
life. We are prone to think we understand ourselves, 
when we do not. If a strange or unusual phenomenon 
occurs to man, threatening his comfort or his safety, and 
he were asked what he intended to do under the circum- 
stances, his answer would almost certainly be, '' I do n^t 
know.'^ If he knew himself, he would answer, I will do 
thus or so. But we are strangers to ourselves, with 
boundless aspirations, oftentimes prone to ask questions 
which man can not answer. {Bell rings.) 



222 LECTURE XXVIII. 

LECTURE XXVIII. 



LEVITICUS XL 



Gentlemen — We now come to the laws concerning the 
Levitical Priesthood. Two of the tribes of Israel were es- 
pecially distinguished, and set apart from the others — one 
under Judah, the other under Levi ; the former having in 
its hands the political government, the latter holding the 
ecclesiastical government. It was predicted in the ante- 
cedent portion of this volume, in the remarkable benedic- 
tion of the aged patriarch Jacob, that the scepter should 
not depart from Judah until Shiloh came. This specifica- 
tion in regard to Shiloh was the grand center of attrac- 
tion in the entire universe, and not merely to the tribes 
of Israel. From that particular tribe, that person was to 
descend ; hence, we have his ancestry noted with punctu- 
ality and precision, so that it can be traced from his nativ- 
itj back to Adam. The tribes of Judah and Levi had 
these characteristic and distinctive honors bestowed upon 
them — the first having precedence in all matters pertain- 
ing to the political government, and the last in whatever 
pertained to the religion of the Jews. The duties of each, 
because of their importance, were classified and arranged 
with great exactness. It is not our purpose to enter into 
the details, though it is important to the understanding of 
the religious system that we classify the elements that 
enter into the constituency of each of these divisions. 

The first and rudimental idea, that enters into the con- 
sideration of the Priesthood, is the altar. And why is it 
the altar ? It is said that the altar sanctified the gift — 
made it valuable. This seems a very singular idea. 

From the beginning of the sacrificial system it was a 



LECTURE XXVIII. 223 

standing principle, that the altar should consecrate the of- 
fering. The reason of this we presume to be — and I 
am happy to say that it is the concurrent conclusion of 
almost the entire religious tuorld, Jewish and Christian — that 
the altar is a type of the divine nature of Christ, upon 
which his human nature was offered as a sacrifice — himself 
being the priest. 

There is a right of primogeniture, recognized from the 
beginning, appertaining to the first born, to whom was ac- 
corded a sort of superiority, because in a certain sense, 
he was the guardian of the persons and property of his 
family. It was a natural — an almost instinctive relation 
and arrangement of things. The first born had the larger 
portion of the family estate, from the earliest period of 
history ; because he had more to do with bringing up the 
junior members of the family. So this right of primogen- 
iture, has been consecrated from the earliest period of the 
world. Of course the younger members of the family, 
would look up to the older: on account of his experienccj 
especially when they had an interest connected with that 
experience. It w^as natural under the system that the 
first born should have the larger portion of the estate, and 
honors and titles of the family. The same law prevails 
now among the aristocracies of the Old World, where the 
same families control to some extent the destinies of em- 
pires, for ages in succession. 

We have seen that religion in its first stages, was a fam- 
ily afi'air, that is, in its social character. It was purely 
domestic. It must have been so from necessity. In the 
antediluvian age, there were no synagogues, because not 
adapted to the then condition of things. 

Gentlemen, there is an interesting conclusion arising 
from our observations upon the progress of religion in the 



224 LECTURE XXVIII. 

world ; which it is important to notice. God only requires 
of man, that which he is able to perform. He has never 
exacted from man, a greater revenue than he was able to 
pay. In Paradise there was nothing required of man — 
no service, no tribute, to secure a continued residence in 
the garden of delights. He had only to withhold his hand 
from a forbidden act. This was a necessary arrangement ; 
and it is all-important to notice this beginning of the divine 
government. It was a fundamental principle, necessary 
to the government of the patriarchal age. 

Gentlemen, in these matters, it is highly important to 
see, that the essential happiness of man, depends upon the 
performance of his duty. We give it our highest sanction. 
God not only asks man to do this, but teaches him the 
propriety and rationality of it. We sometimes have duties 
that are rather disagreeable, which of course are performed 
reluctantly, if at all ; they are duties still, however. We 
dislike exceedingly to hear of paying off^ the obligations 
of duty, in divine worship. Those who thus talk, are sadly 
in the dark in regard to, not only the dignity of their 
Creator, but their own dignit3^ The word duty, is some- 
what corrupted in its current use, hence, to render it agree- 
able and acceptable, in regnrd to religious service, it re- 
quires considerable explanation and qualification. Hence, 
when men speak of discharging religious <luty, they shouhl 
bear in mind that voluntary service, is more acceptable to 
God, than that which is merely official. Free-will offer- 
ings — -spontaneous from the offerer — were always more 
acceptable to God, and lie at the foundation of all pure re- 
ligion. Now, to say that a man must pray, a certain num- 
ber of times in a diiy, that he must visit certain people now 
and then, that ho must do this and omit that, in connection 
with religious service, from a sense of duty merely, is by 



LECTURE xxviri. 225 

no means, compatible with that love, which is the essential 
element, in a free-will offering — and the highest charac- 
teristic of acceptable worship. There is a pleasing and 
popular phrase among children — in reference to loving 
their parents or friends, ^'with all their hearts," which is 
worthy to be adopted by philosophers as well, in reference 
to God. The principle of love is an important element 
in the divine law, which says, " Thou shalt love the Lord 
thy God, with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy 
mind, and with all thy strength." The most pleonastic 
expression we have, is that just quoted. It is singular 
there should be such a reiteration of the injunction — as if 
the whole man was to be exhausted. " What is the reason 
of this ? " has been a question with men of learning — 
why should man have been so severely taxed ? The ques- 
tion can only be answered from one stand-point. The 
love of God is essential to our highest happiness. 

It might be asked in like manner, why was it made ne- 
cessary to eat three times a day ? Or, why was it not or- 
dained of God, that we should derive sustenance from bit- 
ter food, repulsive to our taste ? But do you not observe 
that God has appointed for our food, that which is palata- 
ble ; and of which it is a pleasure to participate ? Our lives 
depend on our eating, and if we had to dig bitter roots 
from the earth to sustain life, there are many who would 
prefer death. God has made it a pleasure to eat — he has 
made the most indispensable duties, the most pleasing. 
This is an important fact — a still more important lesson. 
Again, man is so formed, as to breathe atmospheric air, 
whether awake or asleep, and it is almost impossible to 
deprive him of it. It finds its way where light and heat 
can not enter. A man can not eat or drink when asleep, 
but his breathing proceeds as well by the involuntary ac- 



226 LECTURE XXVIII. 

tion of his lungs when asleep, as when he is awake. Phil- 
osophers and educated religionists, look at all these things 
with wonder and delight, while the ignorant and ungodly, 
fail to notice them altogether. They see not their beauty 
and design as studied in reference to the divine economy. 
Now, we have come to the conclusion from various consid- 
erations, that the things which are most essential to our 
existence and our physical comfort, are easiest to obtain, 
i. e.j in the exact ratio of their indispensableness, are 
they provided for us. Hence, we have more air and 
a more general distribution of it, than of any thing else, 
and it possesses the power of forcing itself into our lungs 
in a manner that nothing else can do. The next most im- 
portant element, is water ; extending next to air, over the 
largest field of space. It is elastic, susceptible of slight 
compression, but of great expansion under the influence of 
heat. It must be observed in regard to water, that it was 
necessary that a large proportion of it should be salted, 
else it would have become stagnant, or putrescent and un- 
palatable to man. The boundless ocean, the great depos- 
itory of this essential to life and comfort, at the proper 
times and in suflicient quantities, supplies through evap- 
oration the wants of man, divested of all impurities. 

Perhaps of all other elements, the most essential to the 
preservatioia of the health and life of man, is salt ; and 
we learn, from observation that here, too, the supply is in 
the ratio of the demand ; and we see that all, not required 
for present use, of these vital elements, is kept from anni- 
hilation and decay, in the great storehouse of nature. 
You may see, in the whole economy of creation, the same 
characteristics, which we shall presently speak of, as the 
attributes of Grod. Some persons imagine that these are 
learned a priori, or taught merely by dogmatic assertion. 



LECTURE XXVIII. 227 

This is a great error. We have them as naturally classi- 
fied, as any thing is classified in the whole, or any depart- 
ment of science. The attributes of God, are divided into 
three classes. We have in the first category, the positive 
or essential qualities, which are first, Power, then Wisdom, 
and third, Goodness. These three stand in a class by 
themselves. They are not thus arranged by all writers 
upon this subject. Some have the order — wisdom, good- 
ness, and power. But, in the English language, being 
governed by its current signification, we always put power 
first. Yet, were we disposed to arrange them more 
abstractly, we would say goodness, wisdom, and power, 
and thereby conform to the custom of the various schools 
of theology, on this subject. 

The second class has also three departments ; viz : Jus- 
tice, Truth, and Virtue, or what is commonly called Holi- 
ness. These three, enter into the second class, and char- 
acterize the details of the Divine government. The 
third class has also three departments ; viz : Condescension, 
Mercy, and Love. We now observe that the first class 
has three departments, not merely artistic but based on 
facts ; and it is so with the second and third — all of which 
enter into the principles of the Divine government. Thus, 
w^e have three classifications, each containing three de- 
partments which, combined, make nine in all. Further- 
more, Infinity, Eternity, and Immutability can be predi- 
cated of all these, making -a splendid genus, under 
which these classes and departments are arranged. 

Now, these arrangements have not been made to con- 
form to certain principles of art, but have an indispensa- 
ble relation to the government of God ; and are as essen- 
tial to it, as is the air we breathe to the support of human 
life. {Bell rings.) 



228 LECTURE XXIX. 

LECTURE XXIX. 



LEVITICUS XL 



Gentlemen — A knowledge of the Pentafteuch, is most 
essential to the understanding of the Christian religion. 

The moral positive and moral natural, are the two great 
diflferential heads, under which every thing in the Bible 
comes. The word moral is prefixed in each case, because 
both are intended to comprehend and direct the manners 
and customs of men. The moral is commanded because 
it is right in itself — the positive is the creature of law, 
and is ordained for wise and necessary purposes. Moral 
religion is moral positive, and religion is, from Alpha to 
Omega, a positive institution. 

If man were in a state of nature, there would be no 
necessity for altars, priests and sacrifices. If there had 
been no revolt, no apostacy from God, there would never 
have been such a word as religion, as shown in the defini- 
tion of the term itself, having respect to its etymology. 
It is said that the consummation of religion is in Heaven. 
There are no prayers, no religion there. Why ? Because 
there is nothing wanting. There man's happiness is con- 
summated in its highest and largest capacity. The dis- 
tinctions, moral positive and moral natural comprehend all 
that is in the Bible. 

The w^hole law of religion is love. We can have nothing 
in religion beyond this. All that has to do with the conduct 
of man — with his honor and glory — is comprehended in 
the word love. Love to whom? To himself? By no means. 
But love to his fellow-man and to his Creator. Hence, 
religion, as a whole, has for its purpose, the control and 
government of man, in such a way as fully to develope that 



LECTURE XXIX. 229 

which constitutes the glory, and honor and happiness of 
man. 

The great fundamental ideas of religion are in the altar, 
priest and victim. The great maxim of the Bible is, that 
the altar sanctifies the gift. 

Man's blood, and the blood of the lower animals, con- 
tain the same elements ; consequently, it has no virtue in 
the abstract. We have already spoken of it as the scab- 
bard of life. It represents the whole personality. 

Another, and a principal, characteristic of religion, is 
the atonement, the details of which are found in the six- 
teenth chapter of Leviticus ; and by reference to that you 
will see an illustration of the importance of that which 
enters into the constituency of the great day of atone- 
ment, which occurred once in every year, and was made 
an important and indispensable element of the Jewish In- 
stitution. It was the day appointed for one great sin- 
offering, and was, for that reason, a splendid type of the 
sacrifice of Messiah, which was made for the sin of the 
world. 

In the tabernacle, after the high priest had gone into 
the holiest of all, he stood in silence and total darkness, 
having the twelve tribes represented on his person, and 
after performing his annual duty to God, he came out first 
into the holy place, and through that to the outer court, 
and there stood in his symbolic robes, until he pronounces 
the final benediction upon the assembled people — a type 
not only of what occurs in the dispensation of grace, but 
of what will be in that of glory. We are told that the 
Lord Jesus Christ will say, in the great day, " Come ye 
blessed," and " Depart ye cursed." So the high priest, 
when he had come out of the holiest of all on that day, 
%aid, " The Lord bless thee, and keep thee ; the Lord lift 



230 LECTURE XXIX. 

up his countenance upon thee; the Lord give thee peace." 
This is very much the same as the Apostolic benediction- 
making due allowance for the change of dispensation — 
showing that every thing in the Christian religion w^as 
there in type, thus giving a complete conception of it. 

There is a higher conception in the Christian religion, 
and in the Jewish religion, than that given by ceremonial 
rites and outward ordinances; hence, we distinguish the 
institutions of the Bible into moral positive and moral 
natural, all of which derive their virtue from divine ap- 
pointment. You all understand that we have positive 
rites in the Christian institution. What are they ? 
They are said so be three in number : First, Baptism is 
called a rite, a positive rite, and it is so, inasmuch as you 
could never have come to it a 'priori — a man never could 
have arrived at such a thing by abstract reasoning ; hence, 
we say, it is a positive institution. The jBrst day of the 
week is a positive institution. Nothing can be more pos- 
itive than the ordinance of the week — the Avonder of the 
Pagan world. They have the same reasons for the month 
and year Christians have, but it puzzles them to account 
for such a division of time as the week^. {Bell rings,) 

^ The third, which is here omitted, is the Lord's Supper. And it 
is just as difficult to account for this a priori^ as for either of those 
mentioned. Birth suggests the idea of commemoration, but deaths 
never. The fact that the followers of Christ commemorate his 
death can never be explained on any other than the Christian hy- 
pothesis, which is, that Christ commanded it to be done. M. 



LECTURE XXX. 231 

LECTURE XXX. 

Gentlemen — The book called Leviticus, of course, has 
respect to judgments and statutes, connected with the fam- 
ily of Levi. The great families connected with the pa- 
triarchal dispensation, were the Royal and the Sacerdotal. 
These represented, in the economy of the universe, the 
two great ideas that permeate the moral government of 
man. This book deals with the details of the offices and 
duties incumbent upon those who represented the priest- 
hood. One family of this tribe was pre-eminently distin- 
guished as that from which the high priests were taken. 

In all the institutions connected with the altar, the of- 
fering, and the priesthood, we have the moral clearly set 
forth in the type cast for it. Through it the remedial 
system was to be developed. 

You will observe that a great deal is said in regard to 
the personal perfection of the priest — meaning that he 
must be not only perfect in the physical sense, but also in 
his intellectual and moral constitution. There is a maxim 
among philosophers, that a sound mind must have a sound 
body, and that nothing can compensate for any lack in 
this particular. A man that officiated at God's altar had 
to be perfect in all the elements of manhood. We are 
speaking now in reference to the inner and the outer man. 
He is an instrumentality, connected with the altar and all 
that pertained to it, and must be entire in respect to his 
personality — possessed of health and vigor, both of mind 
and body. 

The offering referred to in the third chapter of Leviti- 
cus, is the peace offering. (Mr. Campbell read the first 
verse.) Observe how decorously this matter is presented. 



232 LECTURE XXX. 

He shall lay his hand upon the head of the oiSering — the 
great center of vitality. Why so ? He consecrates and 
sets it apart in this way. Whatever might be the offer- 
ing, it was important he should lay his hand upon its head. 
Nothing is too minute for notice in the details of religion 
in type. So, in a written composition, we must have the 
colon, the semicolon, as well as the period — we must have 
the vowel sounds and the consonant sounds. This is the 
mechanism of intercommunication by language among 
men; and thus language by types,- these instituted sym- 
bols between God and man, are just as perfect and com- 
plete, and as easily read, when once understood, as our 
common language. We have the natural speech — that is, 
the language of man — and we have a supernatural lan- 
guage ; and for this purpose we have supernatural type, 
and the reading of these types requires a great deal more 
preparatory study than the reading of the artistic sym* 
bols, which are merely representative of the intonations 
and inflections of the human voice. 

The animal selected for the peace offering was to be 
without blemish. In killing and sanctifying the offering, 
the priest must not lay his hand upon the side or back of 
the animal. It is expressly stated that he should lay it upon 
the head of the offering. He was to examine it, and see 
if it was in the least respect imperfect. God repudiated 
the maimed, the lame, the mean part of the flock. The 
parsimonious Jews offered such offerings as these, and 
God rejected them. He requires now the offering of a 
pure heart and free-will — a perfect presentation and con- 
secration of the whole man. 

Gentlemen, the offering itself must be consecrated — a 
singular fact, by the way. Every thing is to be sanctified — 
to be hagioSy from a and gee, not of the earth — a splendid 



LECTURE XXX. 233 

conception it is. The altar itself had to be prepared, by 
sprinkling it with warm blood (not cold blood), in order to 
consecrate it as the proper table for an offering to the 
Lord. The blood must be taken from the veins of the of- 
fering, at the entrance of the tabernacle, and sprinkled by 
the priest round about the altar, thereby consecrating the 
whole sacrifice. 

This idea of life, gentlemen, is a very lofty one — a very 
profound idea. We have a living sacrifice, a sacrificial 
Saviour, emphatically presented to us, in this idea of life 
paying for itself — the grandest idea in the universe. 
There is nothing above life, and the idea of life is in the 
mind of every one. We have the term life, but how few 
can explain the philosophy of life, of any kind. The ar- 
gument of men of judgment and comprehension, is that all 
the forms of life, animal, vegetable and spiritual, depend 
upon continued emanations from God himself — that is, His 
will is the active element of all vitality. We talk about 
the law of gravity, of attraction and repulsion, etc. But 
what of all this terminology ? Is there any law where 
there is no will, in physics, metaphysics, or science of any 
kind ? This thing we denominate will is a philosophical 
entity. There is nothing on earth that can move or exist 
independent of it. If the leaf on the tree quiver, from a 
motion produced by the atmosphere, the action of the leaf 
is owing to the elasticity of the atmosphere ; but when we 
trace it back, step by step, we are bound to conclude, with 
all intelligent men, that the power which underlies all this 
motion is in that will ; which alone is absolute and eternal. 
The power which underlies the machinery of the universe 
is not a mere intellectual or mechanical power, nor is it 
w^hat we call spirit, in the abstract; but it is what we call 
Will. The power of this will was exemplified by a cer- 
20 



234 LECTURE XXX. 

tain personage, who was called upon for aid by the un- 
clean man. The moment he saw Him, he said, '' Lord, if 
thou wilt^ thou canst make me clean." The Lord responded 
instantly, ''/ will — be thou clean," and the man was 
" whole," perfectly sound, in the twinkling of an eye. 
But in this, as in all other cases, faith on the part of him 
who asked it, was essential to the reception of the healing 
power. We argue, then, that the wnll underlies every 
thing within the range of conceivable power. We learn 
the letters of any language by faith. We teach our chil- 
dren that certain letters represent certain sounds. Let- 
ters form the picture of a word, embodying an idea. Thus 
we study typography, and realize that power, whether 
physical, intellectual, moral, religious, human or divine, 
is in the will. 

The universe w^as created by the word of God — hence, 
hy his will. God said, ''Let there be light." It was the 
expression of his will. Every thing entering into the con- 
stituency of creation, was conceived in the mind of God — 
it was imaged out in wisdom and benevolence, and then 
consummated by the volition of God. Let it be — and it 
was.^ 

It is very important, gentlemen, to understand the root — 
the tap-root — of every system of science and philosophy; 
and especially in this department. It is well to remember, 

■^All the power in the universe is in Will. God's will is God's 
power; man's will is man's power. When man rebeled against 
God, his will or power was placed in conflict with the will or power 
of God. Hence, man's stubborn will must be overcome before a re- 
conciliation can take place. The Gospel is God's joow?gr to subdue 
the rebellious will of man, and bring him again in subjection to the 
Divine Will If man is now lost, it is because he WILL NOT come 
to the Saviour that he may have life. M. 



LECTURE XXX. , 235 

that we are not floating upon the surface, but that we are 
dealing with the foundations of great principles ; and that 
too perfectly in accordance with reason, and that we must 
be familiar, with the ultimatum of the whole matter, if we 
would understand it. 

Some persons have contended, that the will has more to 
do with the physical, than the moral nature of man; but 
we connect it, equally with both. Morality has respect to 
the social system, and is from the Roman (Latin) word 
mos — meaning custom or manner. They gave it the sig- 
nificance of our word custom, and the Greeks comprehended 
it under ethos^ yet they regarded morals, as customs; 
hence, whatever was customary, was approved — consti- 
tuted the manners and customs (morals) of the people. 
But we do not carry these terms into Holy Writ. Moral 
manners, are not mere customs. They are not based upon 
the factitious conventionalities, of mutable humanity, 
which changes its dress and address, every year. There 
is a mutability — a want of fixedness of purpose in man, 
but in God there is no change. He is the same, immutable 
God, throughout all ages. The laws of nature, never 
change. Why? Because an omnipotent, unchangeable 
and perfect will, keeps them inviolate, and in constant 
operation. All the works of God are based on uniformity 
of action, and we found our views upon the regularity of 
nature. 

We speak of things as being '^ very natural." Why do 
we say so? Because they are always moving in the same 
direction. The law of gravity is very natural. It is so 
indeed; because it is uniform. But how was it at the com- 
mencement — in its origin? It did not exist in matter — 
was not comprehended in any category. Hence, we are : 
compelled to look back, to the unoriginated will. That 



23G LECTURE XXXI. 

Avill is characterized by benevolence, as well as power, as 
proved by all the arrangements of the universe. 

The institution called remedial, is moral positive, as 
contradistinguished from the moral natural, and God makes 
it obligatory in the highest degree. Hence, in His wisdom, 
He makes it the duty of the high priest, to sprinkle the 
warm blood from the veins of the offering, round about 
the altar and lay his hand upon a particular part of that 
offering. 

There is no virtue in any divine instrumentality jt?6r se — 
separate from the divine will. It is true philosophy, how- 
ever, to say that the will of God not only makes his re- 
quirements obligatory upon us, but fruitful sources of all 
that enters into the elements of piety — love and gratitude to. 
God. {Bell rings.) 



LECTURE XXXL 



LEVITICUS XVI. 



Gentlemen — The chapter read this morning, is a com- 
pend of the worship of the sanctuary of the tabernacle. 
The picturesque programme, given to us, of the Christian 
religion, is more perfectly consummated in the sixteenth 
chapter of Leviticus, than in any other passage of the 
Bible. Why is this ? Because the tabernacle being now 
finished, the Avorship, with the time, manner and attendant 
circumstances, on the great day of annual atonement, is 
presented as a consummation and concentration, of the 



LECTURE XXXI. 237 

whole typography, connected with what we call, the re- 
conciliatory and propitiatory system of religion. 

As already remarked, the Christian religion implies that 
a bond had been broken — a blessing lost — that man had 
become bankrupt, ruined, beyond recovery, so far as human 
or finite power was concerned. Any man can forgive sins 
committed against himself; but no man can forgive sins 
Gommitted against a third person, or against Grod. Hence, 
the dreadful oracle, ''The wages of sin is death" — death 
in its awful import — not merely as the severance of body, 
soul and spirit ; but death in the separation of man, for- 
ever, from the fountain of life, and all that appertains to 
his glory, honor and immortality. It is an awful separa- 
tion, in view of which, we presume to say, that no other 
instrumentality, human or divine, affords such efficacy, or 
such ideal grandeur, as is revealed to us in the Gospel of 
the Grace of God. 

The yearly atonement, besides the morning and evening 
offering, was the occasion of the grand annual convention 
(because it concerned their interests and destiny) of the 
whole Jewish people. 

We have here, gentlemen, special offerings for special 
occasions, about which we have already spoken, but in the 
annual offering referred to in this chapter, the whole re- 
medial system is exhibited. The offering here, is not for A 
or B, or any one else particularly, but for the whole nation. 
It is a type of the atonement, for the sin of the world. 
Hence, this portion of Holy Writ, dealing as it does, with 
the important facts, may be called the kernel of the re- 
medial system, in type ; the central idea of which, is a me- 
diator bearing a like relation to the offender and the of- 
fended — standing between the parties, laying a hand on 



238 LECTURE XXXI. 

each, and bringing them into a state of reconciliation and 
peace. 

The idea of the atonement, is central to Christianity. If 
there never had been an atonement, conceived or conceiv- 
able, in the Divine Mind, there could never have been any 
religion. " The wages of sin is death." By keeping this 
oracle before the mind, we see why there was so much of 
death, in the Jewish and Patriarchal institutions ; of course 
we mean the death of animals. The blood and life of an- 
imals, appropriated ia the morning and evening sacrifices, 
w^ere indispensably necessary to any intercourse with God 
w^hatever. These things were essential to the institution 
then existing ; but though all established at once, they 
were used only on appropriate occasions. In their na- 
tional character, the Jewish people, had national institu- 
tions, and at the grand annual sin offering, they had prayers 
and thank-offerings, for the whole people. 

It is important that you should notice here, that the 
Aaronic priesthood, was not that by which our religion 
was instituted. The Aaronic and Melchisedek priesthoods 
were very different. The latter w^as not of the Jewish sys- 
tem. He w^as simply a type of the Messiah himself, who 
is the High Priest of our religion. His priesthood was 
prophetic of ours while the Jewish priesthood, was prepar- 
atory or prefatory. The Jewish system was a great font 
of type, to indicate and shadow forth the principles, which 
underlie divine rights, and human rights, so far as the lat- 
ter existed. 

In the beginning of the sixteenth chapter we are referred 
to the family of Moses and Aaron, and to subjects belong- 
ing to the priesthood. The dress of Aaron is spoken of. 
Every thing in this institution, is in unison with a people, 
living after the flesh. It is a fleshly institution, and in 



LECTURE XXXI. 239 

keeping with the condition of man, in his fallen state. 
Aaron was to dress himself preparatory to officiating in 
this great remedial system in type. We are told that 
Moses was commanded to speak to his brother Aaron, 
" that he come not at all times, within the vail, before the 
mercy seat, which is upon the Ark," and the cover of that 
chest, in which was deposited the constitution of that peo- 
ple. 

This was the two tables of the covenant — two tables of 
the Jewish institution, which contained all their religion 
and morality — religion being upon the first and morality 
upon the second table. The rights of God are set forth 
on the first, and the rights and duties of man on the second. 
Hence, as observed on a former occasion, the first four 
divisions are religious, while the last six are moral, relat- 
ing to man as he is now. The first four contain nothing 
but the positive elements of religion. 

The altar was in the outer court, where the presentation 
of the national sacrifice, settled the account (to speak after 
the manner of men) of the w^hole people — so that at the 
end of this day, all the sins of the people, were typically 
pardoned, through the efficacy of the institution here ex- 
hibited. To recapitulate, the priest was to be in a proper 
or appropriate dress for his service — he w^as to have the 
names of the twelve tribes, upon his shoulders and upon 
his heart — the atonement was once a year, and general 
for the whole people. It was special to one as a sacredo- 
tal representative head, of that people. First, we see 
that Aaron was to come into the holy place with the sin 
offering, and the burnt offering. He was to put on the 
holy garments — garments set apart from common uses. 
On this occasion he was to receive two kids for a sin of- 
fering, and one ram for a burnt offering, from the people. 



240 LECTURE XXXE. 

He was to present a bullock for himself and his family. 
The high priests themselves were sinners, and Aaron had 
to make an offering for himself as much as for any other. 
Hence, he had no power to forgive sins. His office im- 
parted dignity to the offerings ; therefore the whole people 
assembled, the offerings, the priest, and his garments, were 
mere types — nothing real — mere shadows of the things 
that w^ere to come. Yet they teach us clearly, the funda- 
mental lesson, that without the shedding of blood, there is 
no remission of sins. It is utterly impossible — wholly in- 
consistent with the moral government of God. Hence, all 
Deism is completely at variance with the foundation prin- 
ciples of Christianity. Without the shedding of blood 
there is no remission — life for life, is the grand idea, and 
it is utterly impossible and inconsistent with the character 
of God, and the safety of the universe — and contrary to 
the teachings of the whole Bible — that God can pardon 
any sin committed in the flesh, without a sacrifice of such 
merit, as will honor God just as much, as the perfect re- 
pentance of the sinner could have done.* God must be as 

^ The whole philosophy of capital punishment grows out of this 
fact. '^ Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be 
shed," is the Divine Law on the subject. In the light of the philos- 
ophy of the Divine Government, as developed by Mr. Campbell, the 
reason of this must be obvious. The murderer has no life to give 
but his own, and justice requires this as the nearest possible approxi- 
mation to an atonement. 

The idea of capital punishment lies at the foundation of all good 
government. The eternal principles of right require that a life shall 
always be given for a life. Besides, the philosophy which underlies 
the laws of the universe, seems to suggest the same necessity. If we 
take weight from one side of a balance, perfectly poised, we must 
take an equal weight from the other side, if we wish to preserve an 
equilibrium ; or else we may compensate for the loss of weight by 



LECTURE XXXI. 241 

much lionored in foro-iving sins, ns lie is lionorcd Avliose 
sins nre forgiven. The whole transaction nnist be in per- 
fect harmony, with the purity and uiajesty of His character; 
so that no spirit in heaven or on earth, couhi imagine that 
He had compromised any thing, in granting the pardon of 
sin, or that He had done anything, or acted in anyway, 
not perfectly harmonious, w^ith the absolute purity of the 
Divine Nature. 

It was a great question with ancient philosophers, and 
indeed with many wise men of modern times, how God be- 
ing insulted and rebeled against by man, could, in accord- 
ance w^ith His nature, pardon sin — how He could over- 
look the rebellion in those days as in these days, and for- 
give the blasphemy, without dishonor to Himself. It was 
never in the power of man, and never will be, to atone in- 
dependently of divine aid, for his own sin — and that he 
could atone for the sins of another, is altogether out of the 
purview of revelation, save as we have the law given by 
Moses — the honored servant of God. 

Aaron was to lay his hand upon one of the goats, and 
the other was to go into the wilderness as a scapegoat — 
the one to make atonement for the sin of the people, and 
the other to show^ that God had forgiven it. Like the 
scapegoat, it was put away and forgotten. It is one thing 
to forgive, and another to forget. Hence, the significance 
of the language, " He will forgive their sins and remember 
them no more." Gentlemen, this is a lofty thought, un- 
paralleled by any thing cherished in the heart of man. 
Think of it — annihilating the sin of the sinner, as though 

extending the leverage power. The law of compensation, or substi- 
tution^ is just as essential in the moral government of God — and with- 
out it harmony could not be preserved. "\L 
21 



242 LECTURE XXXI. 

it had never been — sealing up nnd wiping out the insults 
of an offending party, as though he had never alienated, 
from the divine statutes. God has so wisely arranged 
the glorious system of sin sacrifices, as to magnify His 
own government, and justify the sinner at the same time. 
It is not a mere formality. It is a splendid reality. Every 
thing in the remedial system, is as necessary as is atmos- 
pheric air to the support of life. We repeat it— it is not 
a mere mockery of forms. It was as real as the throne 
of God. The remedial system is a distinct revelation — 
different and distinct even from the moral government of 
the world. It is, therefore, above all understanding, as 
the Apostle says, unsearchable and past finding out : yet 
it is all important in its relations to our planet, and the 
tenantries thereof. There is a magnifying power in the 
government of God — for the exhibition of righteousness 
and grace. God does not remember the sins of men when 
once forgiven — they are absolutely forgiven, and the re- 
cord blotted out forever.* 

It is worthy of notice, that when the high priest went 
into the holy place, he was to remain some time; as he 
had not only to expiate his own, but the sin of the whole 
people. After making intercession in the inner court, 
where darkness reigned supreme, he came from within the 
vail to the door of the sanctuary, and looking over the 
assembled people, he pronounced his benediction, all of 
which is intended to be a symbol of the Lord, who has en- 
tered Heaven, and sat down upon the throne of grace 

^ Man's forgiveness is frequently a very different thing from this. 
Man says he can forgive, but can not forget; but true forgiveness is 
absolute forgetfuhiess, so far as the injury done is concerned. No 
man can keep in his heart or mind an injury and at the same time 
entirely forgive the party who inflicted the injury. M. 



LECTURE XXXI. 243 

and glory, ^vliere He acts as governor and High Priest. 
Hence, no man can get to Heaven, or get forgiveness of 
his sins, except through Him. All the angels in the uni- 
verse, by their intercession, could not procure the pardon 
of a single sinner — they have no power of that kind. 
Therefore, without the reality — the actual sacrifice of the 
Lord Jesus Christ, it would have been impossible for God 
to forgive any sinner. 

There w^as no forgiveness in the case of the angels who 
rebeled against God. The idea of religion seems never 
to have been entertained, in reference to the angelic 
hosts, who forfeited by their rebellion, the favor of God. 
There was no redemption for them. They were cast 
out, and forever. 

After man broke his covenant, and was driven out of 
paradise, he never could have been reconciled to God, nor 
God to him, without the interposition of the Son of God.^ 
Hence, we say that a great sacrifice w^as not a mere form 
— a typical ceremony. It is the most interesting reality 
in the universe. There is nothing more real, in the 
throne of God, than the presence of the crucified Re- 
deemer — the High Priest of the entire universe. We now 
add, that these realities were, and are, indispensable to 

■^ A mediator must be the friend of both parties — the offended 
and offender. Christ is the friend of both God and man; conse- 
quently He is equal to the task of bringing about a reconciliation 
between these parties. Uniting in Himself the human and Divine 
— perfect humanity and perfect Divinity — He vindicates the Di- 
vine justice on one side, and makes provision for the weakness of 
human nature on the other ; so that God can now be just, and at the 
same time the justifier of him who believes in Jesus. In the person 
of the Son of God the interests of heaven and earth meet together 
and are reconciled. M. 



244 LECTURE XXXI. 

the preservation and government of the world of man- 
kind. To have forgiven sin, without a sin offering, would 
have jeopardized the safety of the universe. Hence, we 
repeat, that the laws of matter are not more necessary 
than those of the Redemption. Gentlemen, it is a very 
solemn thought, that it cost God infinitely more to redeem 
man than to create him. 

A knowledge of these types and ordinances, is neces- 
sary to prepare our minds to app'reciate the importance 
of those matters to which they relate — to appropriate and 
then to enjoy their knowledge, is obtained by correct 
teaching, after which comes the enjoyment of it. 

We have endeavored to prepare your minds, to enter 
into an investigation of the different items of the six- 
teenth chapter, relating to this great day of atonement. 
We have already spoken of the reasons, for using the 
kids and lambs, on such occasions as these. 

We are told, that after the atonement had been made, 
after the kids were presented at the altar, the fire from 
Heaven having consumed one ; that after this grand cere- 
mony was consummated, the high priest entered into the 
holiest of all. He was to pass out of the church on 
earth, into the church in Heaven. The holiest place was 
this church ; and thus, after our Great High Priest suffered 
on earth. He passed into — not the typical — but the real 
Heaven ; that is, He ascended upon high — He entered 
Heaven, in its realities, and there bears the names of all 
His people upon His heart. He sees and feels them 
upon and in His heart; so that there is a perfect sympa- 
thy between them. After he had gone into the holiest 
place, the high priest had to remain there for some time, 
to represent the fact, that after our Great High Priest, 
has been for a long time absent from earth, he is to come 



LECTURE XXXI. 245 

again, as the high priest appeared at the outer court of 
the sanctuary — thus presenting a type of the day of 
judgment. The Lord will come, and will not cease His 
work, until the last denizen of earth has received his dues 
for the deeds done in the flesh. Yes ! He will come at 
last, from the most holy place, as you have it described in 
the New Testament, and then too. He will pronounce bless- 
ings. He comes in the day of judgment, and says, the 
Lord bless them, the Lord keep them, the Lord give them 
peace. Thus Aaron, on the great day of atonement, 
having the names of the twelve tribes upon his breast and 
upon his shoulders, stands in the outer court, and look- 
ing over the whole assembly of the people, pronounces 
the annual blessing. He has gone into the holiest of all, 
has stood before the Lord, has come out unhurt and justi- 
fied ; when he comes to the door of the sanctuary, and 
pronounces a blessing upon all those whom he had re- 
presented. 

Thus, gentlemen, this prophetic typography brings us 
to the final kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, and pro- 
grammes the fact that before Him the whole human race 
shall stand. Not a single descendant of father Adam — 
not one — will be absent. Yes ! when he comes from the 
sanctuary of the heavens. He will come in the brightness 
of His glory, with his holy angels, and pronounce the 
benediction — ^the Lord bless them, the Lord keep them, 
the Lord lift them up and give them peace. So all men 
that will, may realize what is guaranteed and secured to 
us in this remedial system of grace and mercy. {Bell 
rings) 



246 LECTuuiv xxxn. 



LECTURE XXXII. 



LEVITICUS, XVII. 



[President Campbell's lecture this morning seemed to 
be designed chiefly to supply omissions, and was confined 
to the same subject discussed yesterday. — Rep.] 

Gentlemen — We are approaching the conclusion of 
what we designed to say on the subject of the Levitical 
Priesthood, and the mystic edifice, called the tabernacle. 
It was, indeed, a tabernacle — indicating, like our modern 
taverns, a place of rest. It was made for a people march- 
ing from Egypt to Canaan. It w^as to be used during their 
pilgrimage, but the idea involved was fully consummated 
in that magnificent building known to sacred history as 
the Jewish temple. The elements of the remedial system 
are consummated in this institution. 

It is a fixed fact, gentlemen, revealed in the Bible, and 
permeating the great charter of immortality, from the first 
page to the last, that without the shedding of blood there 
is no remission of sins. Blood, the scabbard of life, was 
a prominent and conspicuous feature of religious systems, 
from their first inception to the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. 

There was nothing superfluous about the tabernacle, 
any more than there is in the Christian religion. There 
w^as a perfect appropriateness and harmony of adaptation 
in all the types, to the realities. Yet this was not a 
formal institution, a system of ceremonies. It is true it 
had the appearance of these, but the most significant ideas 
and truest conceptions of the Divine character, and of 
human character, and of man's relations to the divine, are 
here stereotyped and pictured to the eye of reason ; so 



LivrruKE xxxn. 247 

that the student of God may become intimately and per- 
fectly acquainted with every element in the remedial sys- 
tem, and not only become acquainted with them, but know 
tlie reason of each and every one. If we have a clear and 
full understanding of the tabernacle, we will surely appre- 
ciate all the realities that enter into the constituency of 
the rescue and redemption, the beatification and glorifica- 
tion of man. 

In the holy place was perfect darkness, not a ray of 
light from sun or moon or star penetrated that sanctified and 
hallowed spot. An artificial light, indicated that singular in- 
terposition — -that mystery of mysteries — God's enlighten- 
ment of the world by the incarnation of his beloved son, 
and by giving to him, without measure, the spirit and light 
of life, that he might impart that spirit to the great func- 
tionaries to be employed in the grand drama of man's re- 
demption. 

Beside the altar and laver, we have also the table of 
shew-bread — the Father's bread. There is always bread 
in the house of God. This was also a type. The priests 
only ate of that bread. The high priests and circumcised 
men only were allowed to eat at that table. All others 
partook of it at the peril of reprobation, and the judg- 
ments of God. 

God's house is a house of order. His laws are w^ise and 
just, and can never, never be repealed or abolished. Not 
one of His works is redundant — nothing is to be trifled 
with. As w^e are taught by the Great Teacher himself, 
every article and particle of the law, and every word of 
the Gospel is just as it should be, for the accomplishment 
of the Divine purposes. 

Passing the golden candlesticks, w^e approximate the 
vail, emblazoned with cherubim and seraphim — ministering 



248 LECTURE XXXII. 

spirits between God and man. The priests stood before 
the vail. We have a beautiful allusion to this by the 
Apostle. There is no vail between us and the Great 
Father. The priests were carnal, and all such persons 
stand before the vail. It is a singular fact that the priests 
were separated frora earth. They were neither of earth 
nor heaven, but of an institution ordained of God. 

Our faith is based upon the light which God has given. 
God has given us testimony, the light of life, and given 
men power to appreciate that light. The Apostle Paul is 
the best commentator on this subject, and has discoursed 
largely upon it. 

The high priest, robed in his splendid symbolic gar- 
ments, entered the holiest of all, once a year, to intercede 
for the people; remained some time, then pushed aside 
the embossed curtain, and came to the door of the sanc- 
tuary, on the day of atonement, an<l pronounced that re- 
markable benediction upon the worshiping assembly stand- 
ing without. 

This is a beautiful and truthful figure of our Saviour, 
who has now entered into the holiest of all, where he can 
not be seen by the eye of man, where he stands pleading 
and officiating for us, as did Aaron for his people, in the 
d;iy of atonement. When the fulness of time shall have 
come, when the whole purpose of God has been accom- 
plished, he will come out on the great day, and pronounce 
a benediction, upon his ransomed people. 

When the high priest went into the innermost depart- 
ment, he wore a holy robe, upon w^hich were many tinkling 
bells. When enveloped in darkness — shrouded from the 
view of tho.^e for whom he was interceding, these bells 
g.;ive evidence of the life of the high piiest — hence, so 
long as they heard the bells, they were assured of his 



LECTURE XXXIII. 249 

safety, and could pray with confidence. Had the high 
priest gone presumptuously, and without due preparation, 
into the holiest of all, he would undoubtedly have been 
made the object of divine wrath ; but while he conducted 
himself with propriety, and wore the holy robe with the 
names of the twelve tribes upon the shoulders and heart, 
he was safe ; and the bells continued to give a comforting 
assurance, that he was interceding for the worshiping 
assembly without. The Apostle Paul, dwells with enthu- 
siasm, upon this subject. Our High Priest has entered 
into the literal heavens, with the names of his followers 
engraven upon his heart. 

Thus, we see, gentlemen, that the whole system of re- 
conciliation, is consummated in our religion. It is emphat- 
ically a system of reconciliation — the restoration of amity 
and the installation of the most felicitous, and honorable, 
and glorious relationship and harmony, between the Lord 
God Almighty and his sons and daughters. (Bell rings,) 



LECTURE XXXIII. 

HEBREWS VIII ; IX, 8. 

Gentlemen — We have a recapitulation by the Apostle 
in the document, a portion of which was read this morn- 
ing. The letter to the Hebrews, is the only document in 
the New Testament, giving any complete idea of the Chris- 
tian religion. It presents the very central idea of the 
whole Christian faith. Paul thought it due, to the great 
cause which engrossed his attention, in his mission to both 



250 LECTURE XXXIII. 

Jew and Gentile, to give a perfect summary, of the whole 
remedial system, in an abbreviated form, by concentrating 
his thoughts and those of his readers, upon the funda- 
mental elements and powers of the great system of re- 
demption. 

There is but one central idea, in any science. It is so 
with the science of the Bible, as presented to the study 
and contemplation of man. That idea permeates the en- 
tire Book of Books — as respects the religion based upon 
the sacrifice of Christ. It is indicated upon the first page, 
and written upon the last — it is the Alpha and the Omega 
of the whole volume. We have, however, said so much 
upon this point already, that we deem it unnecessary, more 
than to advert to it again, as we enter upon the study of 
the New Institution. 

There are three great and fundamental ideas, upon 
which the remedial system rests. These you will remem- 
ber, are the altar, the sacrifice and the officiating priests. 
These are the constitutional elements of every dispen- 
sation of religion. The very thoughts of religion ante- 
rior to these, w^ere but the shadows of those great ideas. 
The Apostle Paul, in this epistle to the Hebrews, endeav- 
ors — and succeeds, we think — to concentrate the minds of 
his readers, upon these great ideas. They are presented 
here in a constitutional form. God has always dealt w^ith 
mankind, upon constitutional principles. He made Adam 
a guide — a sort of representative man for the whole peo- 
ple of the patriarchal age; and he made Abraham a cov- 
enantee, with regard to the remedial system ; and gave him 
promises, not only in behalf of his own family, but of the 
whole family of man ; so that the people which had the 
oracles of God, involvinoi: the destinv of Jew and Gentile, 
were representative of the w^hole world. Now, with refer- 



LECTURE XXXIII. 251 

ence to the great outline, of the divine arrangement for 
the rescue of man, it is important, that we study in its 
proper order, every item — so far as its wisdom, justice, 
grace and goodness are concerned. 

The Apostle Paul, perfectly read, as well as plenarily 
inspired, gives us a replete and complete summarj^, and a 
most explicit exposition, of the important matters of the 
system of redemption, in its entirety. In the chapter 
read, it is presented in a constitutional form, in reference 
to the covenant made with Abraham and his posterity, 
according to the flesh. He gives us a compend in this 
chapter, and we should have summaries, not only of this, 
but of all important matters, in our minds. We ought to 
concentrate our thoughts, and arrange them systematically. 
Paul had evidently done so, thus showing that all the in- 
stitutions of God, are most perfect and methodical. The 
tables, types, figures, every thing in short, belonging to 
God's covenants with men, are not only perfect, but 
unique — indeed, all the elements entering into our religious 
systems, are splendid examples of perfection, in regard to 
order and arrangement. 

The Apostle says, '^ Now of the things of which we have 
spoken, this is the sum : We have such an high priest, who 
is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in 
the heavens." What a splendid climax ! " On the right 
hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens.'^ 
Could any thing more elevated be conceived of, than this 
presentation of the grand idea ? And still further, " A 
minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, 
which the Lord pitched, and not man." They had sha- 
dows and types in former institutions, but now we have 
realities. No blood shed in the world could atone for a 
single sin, until the sacrifice of Christ, which was the only 



ZOZ LECTURE XXXIII. 

true and meritorious redemption — honorable alike to God 
and man — of the world from sin. Without that great sac- 
rifice, remission of sins would have been impossible, out 
of harmony and incompatible with the nature of God. It 
was wholly impossible for God to lie, said the inspired 
Apostle. He can not deny himself. No ! God could not 
and can not forgive sins, but through blood. Hence, the 
shedding of blood, in the typical institution; and in the 
Christian, the real institution, there is one grand final sac- 
rifice and proclamation of the power of high heaven, for 
the remission of sins. Now, the whole Christian institu- 
tion culminates in this single point.* 

^The following, on the relation of the Sacrifice of Christ to Law, 
is worthy to be considered in this connection : 

'' If it be asked why man died, we can answer readily that it was 
because he sinned; but if we go a step beyond this, and ask why 
sin should be punished with death, we can only say that so God 
willed. He was pleased, for reasons known to himself, to decree 
that the soul that sinned should die; and the reason of the law, 
perhaps, lies beyond our highest conception. 

'' But although we may not be able to say certainly what all or 
even any of the reasons of the law may be, yet the whole matter 
sets divine law itself before us in a most peculiar attitude, and 
shows us that it is one of the most wonderful and majestic objects 
ever submitted to man for consideration. It shows also that the 
great Governor of men will be obeyed at all hazards, that on the 
matter of submission to his rules of order and morality and wor- 
ship, he will compromise nothing, even to the eating of forbidden 
fruit; that ignorance and inexperience are no apology ; that appar- 
ent insignificance in the thing inhibited or enjoined avails not for an 
excuse ; but that every sin and all sin shall be punished with death. 

" And it is not evil works merely that come within the wide-spread 
influence of the divine judgments, but idle words also. ' For every idle 
word shall men render an account in the day of judgment,' said our 
Redeemer. Nor is this carried beyond, or even to the extreme limits 
of God's legislations : for in that day he will try even the secrets of 



LECTURE XXXIII. 253 

There are two or three words in this volume, either of 
which presents a summary of religion. The word recon- 



men's liearts. And as Christ has died with a reference not only to 
the first of men, who was under law, and to the Jews, who werealso 
under hiw ; but also to the Gentiles, who were without written law — 
no human being can have any just ground to hope for exemption ; 
but must assuredly give an account of himself to God, who made 
him, and made him also to serve him, and to glorify him forever. 

'' Now that Jesus died in relation to law, is one of the most obvi- 
ous matters in the Scriptures, although some have failed to see this, 
and have even spoken against it. Such have taught that iiis death 
had no reference to law, and the character of God, as the Euler of 
the world; but this is absurd, for he was made under law, with a 
reference to this very thing. ' When the fullness of time was come, 
God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under law^, to re- 
deem those who w^ere under the law, that we, the Jews, might re- 
ceive the adoption of sons.' If, then, he died with reference to the 
law of Moses, why not with reference to the law delivered at the be- 
ginning of the world ? Man universally stood in relation to this 
precisely as the Jews did to their law. They had all become obnox- 
ious to the curse or penalty due to the violation of theirs, which was 
hanging on a tree. AVell, the world stood in no other relation to the 
original law^ But that he became the Saviour, or substitute of the 
Jews, in this point, is very certain, from what is said in Gal. iii : 13, 
viz : ' Christ has bought us off from the curse of the law^ having 
become a curse for us.' But this was not in a mere moral point of 
view neither, or to reform them in a political or legal point of view; 
that is, he died with an immediate reference to their political deliv 
erance from the death to which they became obnoxious in law; or 
he bore death in their stead, that they, being freed from the law, 
might be justified, or forgiven their sins, through faith in his name. 
Those, therefore, who refused to accept of the deliverance which his 
blood had bought, had the curse executed upon them, and they were 
slain by millions, till they were scattered abroad, far from their na- 
tive home, upon the face of all the earth, as it is at this day. This 
was according to another penalty or curse, threatened by the same 
law, which said that those who would not hearken to the voice of 
the Messiah should be cut off from being the people of God ; and it 



254 LECTURE XXXIII. 

ciliation, for example, embraces the whole matter. We 
care not how many other words may be employed to em- 
body the idea, they inevitably result in declaring substan- 



becomes a question whether they will ever be permitted to return to 
their own land, till they put themselves in such an attitude toward 
the Messiah that this curse or dispersion may be removed. They 
are to return to the Lord, and when they do so the vail which is 
around their hearts shall be taken away, and they then may return 
according to faith, through the mercy of the Gentiles; but then, 
whether they can return while the curse still remains in force, is ex- 
ceedingly problematical. When the curse (ell on Satan he did not, 
and could not, return to heaven ; and when it fell on man he did 
not, and could not, return to Paradise. l;^o of Babylon, Nineveh, 
Sodom and Gomorrah, and so will it be with Rome ; when the curse 
lights upon her it shall never be removed. With God it is in law 
curse or substitution ; but no substitute can take the place of the 
Jews in regard to faith. They must, therefore, suffer the curse till 
they return to the Lord, and the vail be removed from around their 
hearts. There may, therefore, be something entirely erroneous in the 
present views of the Christian world, in regard to their going back 
to Canaan and Jerusalem. For the curses, like the gifts and callings 
of God, are without change, a fearful truth, verily, ' I say unto you 
fear him.' And there are cases in which substitution will not be ac- 
cepted. Indeed, this can be admitted in law, only where there exist 
some extenuating circumstances, as in the case of man, who fell by 
temptation. 

Here, then, dear reader, is a new and living way opened for us 
into the presence of the Great God. Through the rent vail of your 
Redeemer's flesh you may find forgiveness and an entrance into the 
holiest of all. We beseech you, therefore, not to risk your soul's 
salvation by offering contempt to the blood of the covenant. God 
will not hold you guiltless if you receive this grace in vain ; but will 
certainly inflict on you the severe and terrible punishment which is 
threatened against all offenders in this matter. Instead of law, here 
is favor; instead of sin, here is righteousness; instead of misery, here 
is joy unutterable and the pleasures of the Spirit of God forever 
more." — The Gospel Restored^ pp. 14, 15, 16. 



LECTURE XXXIII. ZDO 

tially that it is an institution of reconciliation — an insti- 
tution of God, established in wisdom and benevolence, 
for the purpose of bringing alienated parties together, 
into amity and reconciliation, which never could have been 
done in any other way. Hence, religion, whether inter- 
preted by the Greek or Latin tongue, signifies no more nor 
less than a binding over, or binding again. It is true 
there is another and an unscriptural idea, entertained by 
some of this matter, but it is low and mean, and unworthy 
of man, to cherish any other than that which we have 
here suggested, which is the highest and noblest concep- 
tion of the grand scheme of redemption, entertained by 
man. 

In presenting the matter, however, in this summary 
way, the Apostle wishes to give a very striking and im- 
pressive idea of its importance. '' We have siich an high 
priest." No adjectives, no prefixes, could describe him in 
his full-orbed splendor. He is such an high priest, as has 
sat down on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty, 
in the heavens. You will observe that there was an effort 
of his mind to rise to the dignity of his subject; not only 
does he present him as the high priest — the summit of 
sacerdotal dignity — but as a high priest on the right hand 
of the King Eternal — the very highest conception of ofii- 
cial grandeur. We must not regard the terminology em- 
ployed here as mere common-place expressions — as words 
merely designed to give an exalted view of the subject to 
w^hich they refer. Every word is designed to be signifi- 
cant, and the thoughts they express to exert a potent in- 
fluence upon the intellect and the heart of man. But to 
come to the heart of the matter, he says we have such an 
high priest. There are priests and high priests, but only 
one high priest at a time. There is only one now in the 



256 LECTURE XXXIII. 

universe, there lias been but one since the crucifixion, and 
he is oi*?' High Priest. He was ordained in the topical in- 
stitution, by gifts of thank and sin-offering. 

Gentlemen, I pause here to remark that we can give 
nothing to God. We sometimes imagine (very errone- 
ously) that we have merit in giving, in doing something 
generous toward God. There is not a more baseless fabric 
in the universe than that erected on this idea. That we 
can, in any conceivable sense of the word, give any thing 
to God, is simply preposterous. If we w^ere as pure and 
pious as angels, whence comes that piety ? If we were as 
devotional as Gabriel, whence comes that devotion ? It is 
entirely out of the purview of reason or of revelation to 
suppose, for one moment, that merited honor or glory can 
accrue to us for giving, however generously, what the in- 
stitution of God alone can give us. 

It is very important, gentlemen, to keep constantly be- 
fore our minds, that there never has been, nor can there 
be, any thing done acceptably to God, except through 
Christ the power of God unto salvation. 

We are to look at the Christian Institution in the light 
of the covenant. Paul says, all these things "serve unto 
the example and shadow of heavenly things.'^ Moses w^as 
admonished by God to make all things by the types which 
he had seen in the mount. Now, these were mere shadows 
of the institutions, which we enjoy, for if the institutions 
of the Patriarchal age, had been real, there would have 
been no room, and no need, for the new institution — the 
dispensation under which we live. But if men should put 
a whole tribe of living sentient beings, upon a mountain 
altar, and consume them to ashes, and thus make one 
splendid awful offering, for the planet on which we live, 
it would not atone for the sins of one man. No ! not for 



LECTURE xxxin. 257 

a single aberration, of a single individual. It is impos- 
sible for man to merit — to earn, to gain any thing from 
God. Blest as he is, it is all of grace. 

The Apostle says, that ''finding fault" with the insti- 
tution — recognizing its insufficiency — although given in 
Mount Sinai, and sanctified by the blood of animals, the 
day had come when God declared his purpose, to make a 
new covenant with the house of Israel, and the house of 
Judah, which should be unlike the former institution — 
of a temporal character. It provided for absolute re- 
mission of sins, the giving of a new heart — a new life, the 
fruit of remission and the Holy Spirit, given to them. 1st, 
I will put my laws into their minds. 2nd. I will write 
them in their hearts. 3rd. I will be to them a God, and 
they shall be to me a people" — especially to them. We 
do not like the rendering " I will be to them a God," etc., so 
well as, '' I will be to them, God, and they shall be to me 
my people." 

This defines the new relation of man to God and God 
to man — this brings him into intimate covenant relation 
with God. Observe the principles that underlie the insti- 
tution. He proposes first of all to make them his people — 
all shall know him, from the least to the greatest. The Insti- 
tution of Christianity is the most highly developed divinity, 
in the universe, so far as we know any thing of the subject. 
It is the church properly so called. It is the school 
promised by the prophetic oracle of God the Father, of 
which Christ himself is the teacher. No one can speak — 
no one can teach like him, and his ideas are the highest 
conceptions of divinity. Man could never have conceived 
of such an institution as the Christian Church. It was 
beyond the power of human reason to have arrived at such 

a result. No philosophy could have originated the idea 
22 



258 LECTURE xxxiir. 

of sacrifice, and the existence and efficacy of sacrifice, 
while it repudiates in its very nature all human origin, af- 
fords indubitable proof of its divine origin. No man can 
understand one book of the Bible, and be a skeptic. No 
such ideas, as those developed in the sacred volume, ever 
occurred to the mind of man — it was as impossible for 
man to originate them, as to create or annihilate a particle 
of matter. 

It was just as much impossible for man to discover that 
blood was necessary to the remission of sins, as it was for 
him to create any thing in the universe. It could not be 
the result of imagination, as that is always limited to re- 
alities. The beau ideal — the institution of blood sacrifice 
never could have occurred to the mind of man, which only 
acts upon the images of things around us, and originates 
nothing. 

Gentlemen, this Grand Charter is as certainly divine in 
its birth — in its origin — as are the glittering stars in the 
firmament of God. 

This new institution, is a full development of what is 
usually called the grace of God. As before remarked, 
the altar sanctified the gift, and not the gift the altar. 
The virtue is in the altar, and it seems really strange that 
it should be so. The wisdom and philosophy of the world 
would forever have failed to suggest such an idea. Why 
it is so, always has been, and must remain, a mj^stery ; the 
secret depths of which, are unfathomable by man. We, 
however, suggest to your minds, that the humanity of our 
Saviour, was off*ered upon the altar of his divinity. His 
divine nature gave the off'ering all its value. It would have 
been valueless and ineff*ectual, but for this single idea. 
This is what lies back of all the reasons for salvation and 
justification through sacrifice, from the foundation of the 



LECTURE XXXIII. 259 

earth. It is said that the altar gave acceptableness to the 
offering. Whatever the offering might be, it was sancti- 
fied by the altar, hence, it was divinity in the person 
of Messiah, that made His life a sin offering — his life and 
death a sacrifice, that forever vindicates the throne of God 
— that justifies the Divine character in the forgiveness of 
sins. Hence, if we look at this subject of sacrifice, back 
through the days of Abraham to Cain and Abel, we shall 
find that the crucifixion of Messiah embodied the typical 
ideas, suggested by the altar, the offering, and the priest 
of the Jewish institution. 

Gentlemen, it would save you, and the rest of mankind, 
a great deal of trouble and anxiety of mind, to be thor- 
oughly informed in regard to the fundamental ideas of the 
remedial system. It is well worthy of man, to study the types 
cast in heaven — molded — then sent down by angels form- 
ing a great ladder, between Heaven and Mount Sinai, 
where they were presented to Moses, not only in behalf 
of the Jewish nation, but the whole family of man. 

The continuation of our species — yea of earth and all 
its tenantry — is dependent upon this interposition. But 
for this it would have been impossible for God in all his 
wisdom and power, to have continued the human race, or 
to have permitted man or woman to exist after the first 
covenant between God and man had been broken. \_Bell 
rings^ 



260 LECTURE XXXIV. 

LECTURE XXXIV. 



HEBREWS IX. 



Gentlemen — We are recapitulating the great ideas that 
permeate the remedial system. We have been reading the 
law, and now we are reading portions of the commentary 
of the great commentator on that law, the Apostle Paul, 
who, in his addresses to the Gentiles and his own brethren, 
found it necessary, even in his day, to give them a devel- 
opment of the grand elements that enter into the remedial 
s^^stem. The system, wdth its typography, was supernat- 
ural. The Jewish religion derived nothing from the pa- 
triarchal (which preceded it), except ordinances ; unless the 
promises, which extended over both, may be considered as 
derived from the former. It was a grand symbolical in- 
stitution, and it, therefore, became necessary to cast an 
entire new^ font of types, in order to indicate intelligently 
to man his relations to God, to himself, and his destiny; 
and thus enable him to know himself, a matter of vast im- 
portance to evei'y man. Moses himself was the type- 
founder, and followed the pattern exhibited to him in the 
Mount. God showed him a picture of the tabernacle, hav- 
ing, in harmony with the conditions of man, three distinct 
departments. You will remember w^e presented man as 
body, soul and spirit, a classification as clearly set forth 
in Holy Writ as is any other analysis. Of course we do 
not attempt to limit the powers of man, but speak of him 
as revealed to us, and from our own experience. 

We repeat again that man is not in a natural, but a pre- 
ternatural state — an unnatural condition — in a state of 
alienation from himself and from his God. There is a 
war of opposing elements in man, in which his soul, his un- 



LECTURE xxxrv. 261 

derstanding, is ever dictating and approving the right, 
Avhile his animal nature is suggesting the wrong ; thereby 
creating and continuing a strife, an inward conflict. Paul, 
knowing man inwardly and outwardly, writes, " For we 
wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principali- 
ties, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of 
this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." 
Again, speaking of the inward man, he says, " But I see 
another law in my members, warring against the law of 
my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of 
sin, which is in my members." 

Gentlemen, the greatest wonder in the universe is the 
remedial system. Had the question been propounded in 
eternity, before the earth was, with a full-orbed view of 
the whole creation before the minds of the hierarchies of 
heaven, how it should be conducted, what the mode of op- 
eration, what the terminus, the culminating point of the 
whole grand scheme, I presume to say that no intellect in 
the heavens above, not one of the mighty host of spirits 
that congregate around the throne of God, could have 
given an adequate answ^er to the wonderful question. 
Hence, it is spoken of as a great mystery — a thing not 
incomprehensible, but hidden. It Avas evidently the pur- 
pose of God to keep the solution of the mystery from 
man, for a purpose best known to the Majesty of the 
heavens. There is not an atom of the universe unknown 
to Him — nothing unseen by Him who inhabiteth eternity. 
He says, " Do I not fill heaven and earth with My pres- 
ence ?" Can there be any thing above or beyond Him, 
w^hich He does not see and know ? 

One of the grandest ideas of the system is that con- 
cerning the priesthood. We have a man called Melchise- 
dek, who is prince of peace, and prince of priests — who 



262 LECTURE XXXIV. 

was so far superior, even to Abraham, that the great patri- 
arch himself paid tithes to him. Abraham, in his own 
person, represented, according to Paul's philosophy, the 
whole Jewish nation — all the multitudes descended from 
him, and the grand chain of ideas extends down through 
all his institutions, to the present hour. According to 
Paul's philosophy, Melchisedek was the greatest of all 
men, because Abraham and Levi, and Moses and Aaron, 
paid tithes to him. Even Levi, who received tithes, paid 
tithes to Melchisedek, and glorified and honored him as an 
ambassador sent from the Lord. 

We have in these elementary matters, the basis of the 
remedial system, arranged in three departments — the 
prophetical, the sacerdotal and the real — giving birth to 
three classifications, of which we have already spoken 
sufficiently. 

The chapter read this morning, is one of the best and 
most infallible commentaries upon the tabernacle, which 
had ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary, 
i. e.y one pertaining to the flesh — the outward, the sensuous 
man. The Apostle has commented upon it, even to the 
Hebrews ; and presented the great ideas underlying the 
institution. After the first vail, and after the second 
vail of the tabernacle, was the holiest of all — heaven 
itself, in divine glory and majesty, was present there. 
Incense of the most exquisite composition, was there pre- 
sented to the sense, as prescribed by Moses — the most 
delightful perfume ever breathed by man. The odor was 
superlatively grateful to the sensuous nature. And why 
was this ? What were the reasons for its being so ? is a 
question that arises to every inquisitive student of the 
tabernacle. Was it not a type of the prayers of devoted 
and pure hearts, acceptable to Grod as the incense of the 



LECTURE XXXIV. 263 

He was said to take delifi-ht in it. And once 
a year the high priest, carried into the holiest place, a 
supply of this delicious perfume, that his person and 
presence might be acceptable to God. But with this, he 
he must have a pure, devotional spirit. It was a great 
condescension, on the part of our heavenly Father, to 
vouchsafe this symbol of spiritual and devotional wor- 
ship, that its acceptableness might be signified to man. 

Prayer is begging — supplicating — asking favors. Some 
people think they are doing God great honor, when they 
pray to him ; as if a beggar, who asked alms of a king or 
lord, should conceive that he was doing him honor, be- 
cause, forsooth, he begged a pittance of his wealth ! Men 
fall down upon their knees, or stand up, in the assembly 
of the people — performing a work of supererrogation in 
this respect — and really flatter themselves, when they 
get through, that they have honored God ; and merit 
much for having prayed to him. This is one of the most 
specious and delusive ideas, ever cherished in the heart 
of man. Yet there are multitudes, both in the Old World 
and the New, who really believe that they honor their 
Maker by prayer. Of all the delusions — the hallucina- 
tions, that ever took possession of the human brain, this 
is the most absurd. It caps the climax of religious folly. 

Gentlemen, we are royal beggars. We pray through a 
representative high priest, and it is our greatest honor ; 
and the more grateful we are for the privilege, the greater 
the honor to ourselves. Yet nothing in us, makes our 
prayers meritorious in themselves. Can you suppose that 
a beggar, who stands at your door, and proclaims his 
wretchedness with a flood of tears, thereby establishes a 
claim upon your bounty ? Has he merited any thing at your 
hands ? So, when we come to God upon our knees, with 



264 LECTURE XXXIV. 

contrite hearts and devotional spirits, is it possible to ima- 
gine that we merit any thing at his hands ? Have we any 
right to his attention? Surely not. Xet, in sublime con- 
descension, he hears and answers our petitions when made 
aright. The poet, Young, has said, '' man's highest honor 
is to be in audience with his God." But let him not sup- 
pose he honors God. 

If a man should have the ear of an earthly autocrat for 
an hour's interview, he would tell the honor to his child- 
ren and his children's children. But what is this, to 
having audience with the King of kings and Lord of 
lords? Can man conceive of any thing which should so 
inspire him with gratitude, with veneration and love, as 
that, upon the throne of his glory, God should hear the 
prayers of the frail denizens of earth — should listen to 
their supplications ? There is not, within the lids of the 
Bible, a presentation of the Divine character, so fascinat- 
ing as that which reveals Him as a prayer-hearing God. 
The idea that God, in his infinite majesty, could conde- 
scend to listen to the prayer of an earthly beggar — or 
that he would hold in abeyance the awful machinery of 
the universe, as in answer to the prayer of Joshua ! 
What an exhortation to man, to bend his heart and soul 
in thanksgiving and adoration, to the bountiful Fountain 
of his being. 

In the order of worship, the high priest stands before 
God, and entreats his attention to the wants of his people, 
having the names of the twelve tribes upon his person. 
The Lord looks down upon him and blesses him, and 
through him, the people he represents. 

Gentlemen, let us mark emphatically, the great idea of 
representation, which permeates this entire volume. We 
think it a great matter, to have a representative govern- 



LECTURE XXXIV. 265 

ment. It is at least but an offshoot, from the great sys- 
tem that pervades the entire Bible. God made one man 
that represented the whole race — Adam first; and the 
second Adam represented the race of man, and God as 
well. The system of representative men working for the 
honor and glory of God, is one of the grandest ideas 
jresented to man's contemplation. Coming down, by 
regular gradations, from creation to the Cross, they have 
laid a foundation for our worship, firm as the throne of 
God itself. (Bell rings?) 
23 



266 SERMON ON THE LAW. 



A SERMON ON THE LAW-* 



"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the 
flesh, God, sending his own Son, in the likeness of sinful flesh, and 
for sin, condemned sin in the flesh." — Romans viii, 3. 



Words are signs of ideas or thoughts. Unless words 
are understood, ideas or sentiments can neither be com- 
municated nor received. Words that in themselves are 
quite intelligible, may become difficult to understand in 
different connections and circumstances. One of the most 
important words in our text is. of easy signification, and 
yet, in consequence of its diverse usages and epithets, it 

■^As a proper sequel to the preceding Lectures on the Pentateuch, 
and as, in some respects, supplying the omission of Mr. Campbell's 
Lectures on the New Testament, which always occupied the latter 
portion of the session, but which we did not think proper to give in 
this volume, we have concluded to republish the abstract of his cel- 
ebrated Sermon on the Law, delivered before the Redstone Baptist 
Association on the 1st of September, 1816. 

This sermon may be regarded as embodying the fundamental ideas 
of the Reformation, for which Mr. Campbell plead. It contains the 
seeds of things. Its ortliodoxy was questioned by the Regular Bap- 
tist Association, and was made the ground of impeachment and 
trial of Mr. C. for heresy, before that august body, at its annual 
meeting subsequent to the delivery of the sermon. It is, therefore, 
vahuible as an item of ecclesiastical history, and its appearance in 
this volume will bring it within the reach of all who may desire to 
procure a copy. M. 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 267 

is sometimes difficult precisely to ascertain what ideas 
should be attached to it. It is the term laio. But by a 
close investigation of the context, and a general knowledge 
of the Scriptures, every difficulty of this kind may be 
easily surmounted. 

In order to elucidate and enforce the doctrine contained 
in this verse, we shall scrupulously observe the following 
method : 

1. We shall endeavor to ascertain what ideas we are to 
attach to the phrase "• the laiv^'^ in this, and similar por- 
tions of the sacred Scriptures. 

2. Point out those things which the law could not ac- 
complish. 

3. Demonstrate the reason why the laiv tdLiied to accom- 
plish those objects. 

4. Illustrate how God has remedied those relative de- 
fects of the law. 

6. In the last place, deduce such conclusions from these 
premises, as must obviously and necessarily present them- 
selves to every unbiased and reflecting mind. 

In discussing the doctrine contained in our text, we are, 
then, in the first place, to endeavor to ascertain what ideas 
Yfe are to attach to the terms " the law^^^ in this, and simi- 
lar portions of the sacred Scripture. 

The term " law^^ denotes, in common usage, '' a rule of 
action." It was used by the Jews, until the time of our 
Saviour, to distinguish the whole revelation made to the 
Patriarchs and Prophets, from the traditions and command- 
ments of the rabbles or doctors of the law. Thus the 
Jews called the Psalms of David laiv — John xii, 34. Re- 
ferring to the one hundred and tenth Psalm, they say, 
" We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for- 
ever." And again, our Saviour calls the Psalms of David 



2G8 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

latv — John x, 34. Referring to Psalm Ixxxii, 6, he saj^s, 
'^ Is it not written in your law, I said ye are gods.'' Thus 
when we hear David extolling God's law, we are to under- 
stand him as referring to all divine revelation extant in his 
time. But when the Old Testament Scriptures were fin- 
ished, and divided according to their contents, for the use 
of synagogues, the Jews styled them the law, the prophets 
and the psalms. Luke xxiv, 44, Christ says, " All things 
written in the law of Moses, in the prophets, and in the 
psalms, concerning me, must be fulfilled." 

The addition of the definite article, in this instance, as 
well as all others, alters the signification, or at least de- 
termines it. During the life of Moses, the words " the 
laiv^'' without some explicative addition, were never used. 
Joshua, Moses' successor, denominates the writings 'of 
Moses '^ the book of the law ;" but never uses the phrase 
by itself. Nor, indeed, have we any authentic account of 
this phrase being used, without some restrictive definition, 
until the reign of Abijali, 2 Chron., xiv, 4, at which time 
it is used to denote the whole legal dispensation by Moses. 
In this way it is used about thirty times in the Old Testa- 
ment, and as often with such epithets as show that the 
whole law of Moses is intended. 

When the doctrines of the reign of Heaven began to be 
preached, and to be contrasted in the New Testament with 
the Mosaic economy, the phrase ^' tlie law^^ became very 
common, and when used without any distinguishing epi- 
thet, or restrictive definition, invariably denoted the whole 
legal or Mosaic dispensation. In this acceptation it occurs 
about one hundred and fifty times in the New Testament. 
To make myself more intelligible, I Avould observe that 
when the terms " the laiu'^ have such distinguishing pro- 
perties or restrictive definitions as "' the royal law," " the 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 269 

law of faith," "the Law of liberty," "the law of Christ/' 
" the law of the spirit of life," etc., it is most obvious the 
whole Mosaic law or dispensation is not intended. But 
when we find the phrase " the law" without any such lim- 
itations or epithets as " the law was given b}^ Moses," 
"the law and the prophets were until John," "if ye be 
led by the Spirit, ye are not under the law," " ye are not 
under the law but under grace," etc., we must perceive the 
whole law of Moses, or legal dispensation, is intended. 

I saj^ the ivliole law, or dispensation by Moses; for in 
modern times the law of Moses is divided and classified 
under three heads, denominated the moral, ceremonial, and 
judicial law. This division of the law being unknown in 
the apostolic age, and of course never used by the Apos- 
tles, can serve no valuable purpose, in obtaining a correct 
knowledge of the doctrine delivered by the Apostles re- 
specting the law. You might as well inquire of the Apos- 
tles, or consult their writings, to know who the Supralap- 
sarians or Sublapsarians are, as to inquire of them, what 
is the moral, ceremonial or judicial law. But, like many 
distinctions handed down to us from miystical Babylon, 
they bear the mark on their forehead that certifies to us 
their origin is not divine. If this distinction were harm- 
less, if it did not perplex, bias and confound, rather than 
assist the judgment, in determining the sense of the apos- 
tolic writings, we should let it pass unnoticed; but justice 
to the truth requires us to make a remark or two on this 
division of the law. 

The phrase, the moral laiv^ includes that part of the law 
of Moses, "written and engraved on two tables of stone," 
called the ten commandments. Now, the word moral^ ac- 
cording to the most approved lexicographers, is defined, 
" relating to the practice of men toward each other, as it may 



270 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

be virtuous or criminal, good or bad." The French, from 
whom we have the term moral^ immediately, and the Ro- 
mans, from whom we originally received it, used it agree- 
ably to the above definition. Of course, then, a moral 
law is a law which regulates the conduct of men toward each 
other. But Avill the ten commandments answer this defi- 
nition ? No. For doctors in divinity tell us, the first table 
of the Decalogue respects our duty to God; the second 
our duty to man. Why, then, call the ten com.mandments 
" the moral law^^ seeing but six of them are moral, that 
is, relating to our conduct toward men ? In modern times, 
we sometimes distinguish between religion and morality ; 
but while we afiirm that religion is one thing, and moral- 
ity another; and then afiirm that the ten commandments 
are ilie moral law — do w^e not, in so saying, contradict our- 
selves ? Assuredly, the legs of the lame are not equal ! 

A second objection to denominating the ten precepts, 
" the moral law," presents itself to the reflecting mind, 
from the consideration that all morality is not contained in 
them. When it is said that the ten commandments are 
"• the moral law," does not this definite phrase imply that 
all morality is contained in them ; or, what is the same in 
eff'ect, that all immorality is prohibited in them ? But, is 
this the fact ? Are the immoralities called drunkenness, 
fornication, polygamy, divorces on trifiing accounts, retal- 
iation, etc., prohibited in the ten precepts ? This ques- 
tion must be answered in the negative. If it had been 
asked, is all immorality prohibited in this saying, " Tiioa 
shalt love thy neighbor as thyself?" we would readily an- 
swer, yes ; but it is the so-called moral law we are speak- 
ing of. We afiirm, then, that the above immoralities are 
not prohibited in the Decalogue, according to the most ob- 
vious construction of the words. We are aware that 



SEIIMOX ON THE LAW. 271 

larorc volumes have been written to show how much is com- 

o 

prehenlled in the ten precepts. But. niethinks, the vo- 
luminous works of some learned men on this subject too 
much resemble the writings of Peter D'Alva, Avho wrote 
fortj^-eight huge folio volumes to explain the mysteries of 
the conception of the Messiah in the womb of the Virgin 
Marj^ I And what shall we think of the genius who dis- 
covered that singing hymns and spiritual songs was pro- 
hibited, and the oflBce of the Ruling Elder pointed out, in 
the second commandment? That dancing and stage plays 
were prohibited in the seventh ; and supporting the clergy 
enjoined in the eighth ! According to this latitude of in- 
terpretation, a genius may arise and show us that law^ and 
gospel are contained in the first commandment, and of 
course all the others are superfluous. But this way of 
enlaro^ino; on the Decaloo-ue defeats the division of the 
law of Moses, which these doctors have made. For in* 
stance, they tell us that witchcraft is prohibited in the first 
commandment ; incest and sodomy in the seventh. Now, 
they afterward place these vices, with the laws respecting 
them, in their judicial law; if, then, their moral law in- 
cludes their judicial law, they make a distinction without 
a diiference. 

There remains another objection to this division of the 
law. It sets itself in opposition to the skill of an Apos- 
tle, and ultimately deters us from speaking of the ten pre- 
cepts as he did. Paul, according to the wisdom given 
unto him, denominated the ten precepts the " ministration 
of condemnation and of death."— 2 Cor. iii, 7, 14. This 
we call the moral law. Whether he or we are to be es- 
teemed the most able ministers of Christ, it remains for 
you, my friends, to say. Paul, having called the ten pre- 
cepts the ministration of death, next affirms that it was to 



272 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

be done away — and that it was done away. Now, the 
calling the ten precepts " the moral law" is not only a vi- 
olation of the use of words ; is not only inconsistent in 
itself, and contradictory to truth ; but greatly obscures 
the doctrine taught by the Apostle in the third chapter of 
2 Corinthians, and in similar passages, so as to render it 
almost, if not altogether, unintelligible to us. To use the 
same language of the moral law as he used in respect to 
the ministration of condemnation and death, is shocking 
to many devout ears. When we say the moral law is done 
away, the religious world is alarmed; but when we declare 
the ministration of condemnation is done away, they hear 
us patiently, not knowing what we mean ! To give new 
names to ancient things, and speak of them according to 
their ancient names, is perplexing indeed. Suppose, for 
example, I would call the English law which governed 
these States when colonies, the constitution of the United 
States, and then affirm that the constitution of the United 
States is done away, or abolished, who would believe me ? 
But if the people were informed that what I called the 
constitution of these States was the obsolete British law, 
they would assent to my statement. Who would not dis- 
cover that the giving of a wrong name was the sole cause 
of such a misunderstanding ? Hence it is, that modern 
teachers, by their innovations concerning law, have per- 
plexed the student of the Bible, and caused many a fruit- 
less controversy, as unnecessary as that relating to the 
mark set on Cain. It does not militate with this state- 
ment to grant tint some of the precepts of the Decalogue 
have been re-promulgated by Jesus Christ, any more than 
the re-promulgation of some of the British laws does not 
prevent us from affirming that the laws under which the 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 273 

colonies existed are done away to the citizens of the United 
States. But of this more afterward. 

To what has been said, it may be added, that the mod- 
ern division of the law tends very much to perplex any 
person who wishes to understand the Epistles to the Ro- 
mans, Galatians and Hebrews ; insomuch, that while the 
hearer keeps this distinction in mind, he is continually at 
a loss to know whether the moral, ceremonial, or judicial 
law is intended. 

Before dismissing this part of the subject, we would ob- 
serve, that there are two principles, commandments or laws, 
that are never included in our observations respecting the 
law of Moses, nor are they ever in Holy Writ called the 
law of Moses. These are, ^' Thou shalt love the Lord thy 
God with all thy heart, soul, mind and strength, and thy 
neighbor as thyself." These, our Great Prophet teaches 
us, are the basis of the law of Moses, and of the prophets. 
"On these two commandments hang all the laAv and the 
prophets.'^ Indeed, the Sinai law, and all Jewish law, is 
but a modification of them. These are of universal and 
immutable obligation. Angels and men, good and bad, 
are forever under them. God, as our Creator, can not re- 
quire less; nor can we, as creatures and fellow creatures, 
propose or expect less, as the standard of duty and per- 
fection. These are coeval with angels and men. They 
are engraven with more or less clearness on every human 
heart. These are the ground-work or basis of the law, 
written in the heart of heathens, which constitute their 
conscience, or knowledge of right and wrong. By these 
their thoughts mutually accuse or else excuse one another. 
By these they shall be judged, or at least all who have never 
seen or heard a written law, or revelation. But for these 



274 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

principles there had never been either law or gospel. Let it, 
then, be remembered, that in the Scriptures, these precepts 
are considered the basis of all law and prophecy ; conse- 
quently, when we speak of the law of Moses, we do not 
include these commandments, but that whole modification 
of them sometimes called the legal dispensation. It must 
also be observed, that the Apostles sometimes speak of 
the law, when it is obvious that a certain part only is in- 
tended. But this, so far from clashing with the preceding 
observations, fully corroborates them. For if the Apostle 
refers to any particular part of the law, under the general 
terms, the law, and speaks of the whole dispensation in the 
same terms, without any additional definition, then, doubt- 
less, the phrase the law denotes the whole legal dispensa- 
tion, and not any particular law, or new distinction, to 
which w^e may afiix the words, the law. 

2. We shall now attempt to point out those things 
which the law could not accomplish. 

In the first place, it could not give righteousness and 
life. Righteousness and eternal life are inseparably con- 
nected. Where the former is not, the latter can not be 
enjoyed. Whatever means put us in the possession of the 
one, puts us in the possession of the other. But this the 
law could not do. ''For if there had been a law given, 
w^hich could have given life, verily, righteousness should 
have been by the law\" — Gal. iii, 21. " If righteousness 
come by the law% then Christ is dead in vain." These tes- 
timonies of the Apostle, with the whole scope of divine 
truth, teach us that no man is justified by the law, that 
righteousness and eternal life can not be received 
through it. 

Here we must regret that our translators, by an in- 
judicious supplement, should have made the Apostle ap- 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 275 

parently contradict himself. I allude to the supplement in 
the tenth verse of Romans, seventh chapter. From the 
seventh verse of this chapter, the Apostle narrates his ex- 
perience as a Jew under the law, and then his experience 
as a Christian, under the gospel, freed from the law\ The 
scope of the tenth verse and its context is to show what 
the Apostle once thought of the law, and how^ his mistakes 
were corrected. If any supplement be necessary in this 
verse, we apprehend it should be similar to what follow^s : 
" And the commandment (which I thought would give me) 
life, I found (to lead) to death.^' This doubtless corres- 
ponds with the scope of the context, and does not, like 
the present supplement, clash with Gallatians iii and xxi. 
Indeed the law, so far from being '' ordained to give life,'^ 
was merely '' added to the promise of life, till the seed 
should come to whom the promise was made." '^ More- 
over, the law entered that the offense might abound.'' 
" For by the law^ was the knowledge of sin." For these 
reasons we conclude that justification, righteousness and 
eternal life can not by any means be obtained by the law. 

2. In the second place, the law could not exhibit the 
malignity or demerit of sin. It taught those that w^ere 
under it, that certain actions were sinful — to these sinful 
actions it gave descriptive names — one is called theft, a 
second murder, a third adultery. It showed that these ac- 
tions were offensive to God, hurtful to men, and deserved 
death. But how extensive their malignity and vast their 
demerit the law could not exhibit. This remained for later 
times and other means to develop. 

3. In the third place, the law could not be a suitable 
rule of life to mankind in this imperfect state. It could 
not to all mankind, as it was given to and designed only 
for a part. It was given to the Jewish nation, and to none 



276 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

else. As the inscription on a letter identifies to whom it 
belongs ; as the preamble to a proclamation distinguishes 
who is addressed ; so the preface to the law points out and 
determines to whom it was given. It points out a people 
brought from the land of Egypt, and released from the 
house of bondage, as the subjects of it. To extend it 
farther than its own preface, is to violate the rules of crit- 
icism and propriety. How unjust and improper would it 
be to convey the contents of a letter to a person to whom 
it was not directed — how inconsistent to enjoin the items 
of a proclamation made by the President of these United 
States on the subjects of the French government. As in- 
consistent would it be to extend the law of Moses beyond 
the limits of the Jewish nation. Do we not know, with 
Paul, that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them 
that are under the law ? But even to the Jcavs it was not 
the most suitable rule of life. ' T is universally agreed 
that example, as a rule of life, is more influential than pre- 
cept. Now, the whole Mosaic law wanted a model or ex- 
ample of living perfection. The most exemplary charac- 
ters under the law, had their notable imperfections. And 
as long as polygamy, divorces, slavery, revenge, etc., were 
winked at under that law, so long must the lives of its 
best subjects be stained with glaring imperfections. But 
when we illustrate how God has remedied the defects of 
the law, the ideas presented in this particular shall be 
more fully confirmed. 

But we hasten to the third thing proposed in our method, 
which is to demonstrate the reason why the law could not 
accomplish these objects. 

The Apostle, in our text, briefly informs us, that it was 
owing to human weakness that the law failed to accomplish 
these things — " In that it was weak through the flesh." 



SERMON OX THE LAW. 277 

The defects of the law are of a rehative kind. It is not 
in itself weak or sinful — some part of it was holy, just 
and good — other parts of it were elementary, shadowy 
representations of good things to come. But that part of it 
written and engraven on tables of stone, which was holy, 
just and good, failed in that it was too high, sublime and 
spiritual, to regulate so weak a mortal as fallen man. And 
even wdien its oblations and sacrifices were presented, 
there was something too vast and sublime for such weak 
means, such carnal commandments, such beggarly ele- 
ments, such perishable and insignificant blood, to effect. 
So that, as the Apostle saith, the law made nothing per- 
fect, it merely introduced a better hope. If the law had 
been faultless, no place should have been found for the gos- 
pel. We may, then, fairly conclude that the spirituality, 
holiness, justice and goodness of one part of the law, ren- 
dered it too high ; and the carnal, weak and beggarly ele- 
ments of another part rendered it too low^ ; and both to- 
gether became weak through the flesh. Viewing the law 
in this light, we can suitably apply the words of the Spirit, 
uttered by Ezekiel xx, 25, in relation to its incompetence, 
'^I gave them,^^ says he, "' statutes which w^ere not good, 
and judgments whereby they should not live.'' 

We have now arrived at the fourth head of our dis- 
course, in which we proposed to illustrate the means by 
w^hich God has remedied the relative defects of the law. 

All those defects the Eternal Father remedies by send- 
ing his own Son, in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for 
sin, condemns sin in the flesh. '^ That the w^hole righteous- 
ness which the law" required might be fulfilled in us, w^ho 
walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." 

The primary deficiency of the law^ w^hich w^e noticed, 
was, that it could not give righteousness and eternal life, 



278 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

Now, the Son of God, the Only Begotten of the Father, 
in the likeness of sinful flesh, makes an end of sin, makes 
reconciliation for iniquity, finishes transgression, brings in 
an everlasting righteousness, and completes eternal re- 
demption for sinners. He magnifies the law, and makes 
it honorable. All this he achieves by his obedience unto 
death. He finished the work which the Father gave him 
to do ; so that in him all believers, all the spiritual seed 
of Abraham, find righteousness and eternal life; not by 
legal works or observances, in whole or in part, but through 
the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness, 
which is by him ; " For the gift of God is eternal life, 
through Jesus Christ our Lord." This righteousness, and 
its concomitant, eternal life, are revealed from faith to 
faith — the information or report of it comes in the divine 
word to our ears, and receiving the report of it, or believ- 
ing the divine testimony concerning it, brings us into the 
enjoyment of its blessings. Hence it is that Christ is the 
end of the law for righteousness to every one that believ- 
eth. Nor is he, on this account, the minister of sin — for 
thus the righteousness, the perfect righteousness of the 
law, is fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after 
the Spirit. Do we, then, make void the law or destroy 
the righteousness of it by faith ? God forbid — we estab- 
lish the law. 

A second thing which we observe the law could not do, 
was to give a full exhibition of the demerit of sin. It is 
acknowledged that the demerit of sin was partially devel- 
oped in the law, and before the law. Sin was condemned 
in the deluge, in the confusion of human speech, in turning 
to ashes the cities of the plain, in the thousands that fell 
in the wilderness. But these, and a thousand similar mon- 
uments beside, fall vastly short of giving a full exhibition 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 279 

of sin in its malignant nature and destructive consequences. 
But a full discovery of its nature and demerits is given us 
in the person of Jesus Christ. God condemned sin in him 
— God spared not his own Son, but delivered him up — it 
pleased the Lord to bruise him, to pour out his soul an 
offering for sin. When we view the Son of the Eternal 
suspended on the cursed tree — when Ave see him in the 
garden, and hear his petitions — when we hear him exclaim, 
" My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me !" in a 
word, when we see him expiring in blood, and laid in the 
tomb, we have a monument of the demerit of sin, which 
no law could give, which no temporal calamity could 
exhibit. 

We sometimes, in the vanity of our minds, talk lightly 
of the demerit of sin, and irreverently of the atonement. 
In this age of novelty, it is said, '' that the sufferings of 
Christ were so great as to atone for the sins of worlds on 
Avorlds,^' or at least for the sins of the damned as well as 
the saved — that '' one drop of his blood is sufficient to 
atone for the sins of the whole world.^' That is, in other 
words, the sufferings of Christ so transcended the demerit 
of the sins of his people, as to be sufficient to save all that 
shall eternally perish. These assertions are as unreasona- 
ble as unscriptural. In our zeal to exalt the merits of the 
atonement— I say, in the warmth of our passions, and in 
the fullness of our hearts, let us be cautious lest we im- 
peach the Divine wisdom and prudence. Doubtless, if the 
merit of his sufferings transcends the demerit of his peo- 
ple's sins, then some of his sufferings were in vain, and 
some of his merit unrewarded. To avoid this conclusion, 
some have affirmed that all shall be saved, and none 
perish, contrary to the express v/ord of God. Indeed, the 
transition from these inconsistent views of the atonement 



280 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

to what is called Universalisnij is short and easy. But I 
would humbly propose a few inquiries on this subject. Why 
do the Evangelists inform us that Christ died so soon after 
his suspension on the cross ? Why so much marvel ex- 
pressed that he was so soon dead ? so much sooner than 
the malefactors that were crucified with him? It might 
be presumed his last words solve these difficulties — '' It is 
finished, and he gave up the ghost." From these, and 
similar premises, it would seem that his life and suflerings 
were prolonged just so long as was necessary to complete 
the redemption of his people. We are accustomed, on all 
subjects that admit of it, to distinguish between quantity 
and quality. In the common concerns of human inter- 
course, sometimes the quality of a thing is acceptable, 
when the quantity is not; at other times, the quantity is 
acceptable when the quality is not. If a thousand slaves 
were to be redeemed and emancipated by means of gold, the 
person in whose custody they were could not demand any 
more precious metal than gold — when one piece of gold 
was presented to him he might object to the quantity as de- 
ficient, though the quality is unobjectionable. In respect 
of the means of our redemption, it must be allowed that 
the sufferings of Christ were they. These sufferings, 
then, were the sufferings of a divine person — such, doubt- 
less, was their quality. And a life and sufferings of any 
other quality, could avail nothing in effecting redemption 
for transgressors. If but one of Adam's race should be 
saved, a life and sufferings of such a quality would have 
been indispensably requisite to accomplish such a deliver- 
ance. Again, if more were to have been saved than what 
v/ill eventually be saved, the quantity, and not the quality, 
of his sufferings would have been augmented. The only 
sentiment respecting the atonement that will bear the test 



SEIIMON ON THE LAW. 281 

of scripture truth or sober reason, is, that the life and 
sufferings of Christ in quality, and in length or quantity, 
were such as sufficed to make reconciliation for all the 
sins of his chosen race, or for all them, in every age 
or nation, that shall believe in Him. There was nothing 
deficient, nothing superfluous, else he shall never see of 
the travail of his soul and be satisfied : which would be 
the reverse of his Father's promise, and his own expecta- 
tion. When the life and sufferings of Christ are viewed 
in this light, the demerit of sin appears in its true colors, 
all inconsistencies vanish, and all the testimonies of sacred 
truth, of patriarchs, prophets and apostles, harmoniously 
correspond. But if we suppose that the sufferings of 
Christ transcended the demerit of the sins of " his people," 
then we have no full exhibition of the demerit of sin. Nor 
are '^ his people" under any more obligation of love or 
gratitude to him than they who eternally perish. 

That which remains on this head is to show how -the 
failure of the law, in not being a suitable rule of life, has 
been remedied. 

We noticed that example is a more powerful teacher 
than precept. Now, Jesus Christ has afforded us an ex- 
ample of human perfection never Avitnessed before. He 
gave a living form to every moral and religious precept 
which they never before possessed. In this respect he was 
the distinguished Prophet, to whom Moses and all the in- 
ferior prophets referred. In entering on this prophetic 
office, he taught with a peculiarity unexampled by all his 
predecessors. " He spake as never man spake.'^ The ' 
hio;hest commendation he o:ave of Moses was that he wrote 
of him, and that he was a faithful servant in Christ's 
house. From the beginning of his ministry to the end of 

his life, he claimed the honor of being Ihe only person 
24 



282 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

that could lustruct men in the knowledge of God, or of his 
will. He claimed the honor of being the author or fin- 
isher of the only perfect form of religion ; the Eternal 
Father attested all his claims and honored all his preten- 
sions. Respecting the ancient rules of life, the law and 
the prophets, he taught his disciples they had lived their 
day — he taught them they were given only for a limited 
time. ^' The law and the prophets prophesied until John," 
then they give place to a greater prophet and a more glo- 
rious law. Malachi, the last of the ancient prophets, in- 
formed Israel that they should strictly observe Moses' law, 
until a person should come in the spirit and power of 
Elias. Jesus taught us that John the Baptist was he, and 
that the law and prophets terminated at his entrance upon 
his ministry ; for since that time the kingdom of God is 
preached, and all men press into it. To attest his char- 
acter, and to convince the church of his being the great 
Prophet, to whom all Christians should exclusively hearken 
as their teacher ; to weaken the attachments of his disci- 
ples to Moses and the prophets, it pleased God to send 
down Moses and Elias from heaven — the one the lawgiver, 
and the other the law-restorer, to resign their prophetic 
honors at the feet of the Messiah, in presence of select 
witnesses. ''Jesus took with him Peter, James and John 
into a high mountain, and was transfigured before them, 
and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was 
white as snow, and behold there appeared Moses and Elias 
talking with him.'' Peter, enraptured with these heavenly 
visitants, proposes erecting three tabernacles — one for 
Christ, one for Moses, and one for Elias. But while he 
was thus proposing to associate Christ, the great Prophet, 
with Moses and Elias, inferior prophets, a bright cloud 
overshadowed them, and a voice out of the cloud, an indi- 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 283 

rect reply to Peter's motion — " This is my beloved Son, in 
whom I am well pleased, hear ye liimr Thus, Avhen these 
ancient and venerable prophets were recalled to heaven, 
Christ alone is left as the great teacher, to whom, by a 
commandment from the excellent glory, the throne of the 
Eternal, we are obliged to hearken. That this transaction 
was significant of the doctrine above stated, must be man- 
ifest when we take into view all the circumstances. Might 
it not be asked, " Why did not Abel, Abraham, or Enoch ap- 
pear on this occasion ?" The reason is plain — the disci- 
ples of Christ had no hurtful respect for them, Moses and 
Elias, the reputed oracles of the Jewish nation, were the 
two, and the only two, in respect of whom this solemn 
and significant revocation was needful. The plain lan- 
guage of the whole occurrence was this — Moses and Elias 
were excellent men, they were now glorified in heaven, 
they had lived their day, the limited time they were to 
flourish as teachers of the will of heaven was now come to 
an end. The morning star had arisen — nay, w^as almost 
set — and the Sun of Righteousness was arising with salu- 
tiferous rays. Let us, then, w^alk in the noon-daylight — 
let us hearken to Jesus, as the Prophet and Legislator, 
Priest and Kino^. He shall rei^n over all the ransomed 
race. We find all things whatsoever the law could not do 
are accomplished in him, and by him — that in him all 
Christians might be perfect and complete — " for the law 
was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus 
Christ.^^' 

It now remains, in the last place, to deduce such con- 
clusions from the above premises, as must obviously and 
necessarily present themselves to every candid and re- 
flecting mind. 

1st. From what has been said, it folio w^s that there is an 



284 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

essential difference between law and gospel — the Old Tes 
lament and the New.-'" No two words are more distinct in 
their signification than Imv KnOi gospel. They are contra- 
distinguished under various names in the New Testament. 
The law is denominated ^' the letter," 'Hhe ministration of 
condemnation," ''the ministration of death," "the Old 
Testament, or Covenant, and Moses." The gospel is de- 
nominated '' the Spirit," '* the ministration of the Spirit," 
'• the ministration of righteousness," " the New Testa- 
ment, or Covenant," '^ the law^ of liberty and Christ." In 
respect of existence or duration, the former is denomi- 

"^ There are not a few professors of Christianity who suppose 
themselves under equal obligations to obey Moses, or any other 
Prophet, as Christ and his Apostles. They can not understand why 
any part of divine revelation should not be obligatory on a Chris- 
tian to observe ; nor can they see any reason why the New Testa- 
ment should be preferred to the Old; or why they should not be reg- 
ulated e(][ually by each. They say, " Is it not all the word of God, 
and are not all mankind addressed in it?' True, all the holy proph- 
ets spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, and men were the 
objects of their address. It is, however, equally evident that God, 
at sundry times, and in diverse manners, spake to men, according to 
a variety of circumstances, which diversified their condition, capa- 
city and opportunies. Thus he addressed individuals and classes of 
individuals, in a way peculiar to themselves. Witness his address 
to Noah, Abraham, Daniel, Jonah, Paul and Peter. Witness his ad- 
dresses to the Patriarchs, the Jews, and the Christians. Again, men 
are addressed as magistrates, fathers, masters, husbands, teachers, 
with their correlates. Now, to apply to one individual what is said 
to all individuals and classes of individuals, would, methinks, appear 
egregious foll}^ And would it not be as absurd to say that every 
man is obliged to practice every duty and religious precept enjoined 
in the J^ible ? Might we not as reasonably say, that every man must 
be at once a Patriarch, a Jew and a Christian ; a magistrate, a sub- 
ject, a father, a child, a master, a servant, etc., etc. And, certainly, 
it is as inconsistent to say that Christians should equally regard and 



SECMON ON THE L.UV. ' 285 

natecl '^ thnt "which is done aAvay ;'* the hitter ^* that wliich 
remaineth"' — the former was faultj^, the latter faultl(*ss — 
the former demanded, this bestows righteousness — that 
gendered bondage, this liberty — that begat bond-slaves, 
this freemen — the former spake on thiswise, ''This do 
and thou shalt live;" this says, '' Say not what ?/g shall do, 
the word is nigh thee (that gives life), the word of faith 
which we preach ; if thou believe in thine heart the gospel, 
thou shalt be saved.*' The former waxed old, is abolished, 
and vanished away ; the latter remains, lives and is ever- 
lasting. 

2d. In the second place, we learn from vrhat has been 

obey the Old and Xew Testament. All Scripture given by divine in- 
spiration is profitable for various purposes in the perfection of saints, 
wiien rightly divided, aud not handled deceitfully. But when the 
above considerations are disregarded, the word of God must inevita- 
bly be perverted, li ence it is that many preachers deceive them- 
selves and their hearers by selecting and applying to themselves and 
their hearers such portions of sacred truth as belong not to them nor 
their liearers. Even the Apostles could not apply the words of Cbri^^t 
to then:iselve3 or their hearers until they were able to answer a pre- 
vious question — " Lord, sayest thou this unto us or unto allf Xor 
could the eunuch understand the prophet until he knew whether he 
spoke of himself or some other man. Yet, many preachers and 
hearers trouble not themselves about such inquiries. If their text 
is in the Bible, it is no matter where; and if their hearers be men 
and women, it is no matter whether Jews or Christians, believers or 
unbelievers. OTten have I seen a preacher and his hearers undergo 
three or four metamorphoses in an hour. First, he is a moral phi- 
losopher, inculcating heathen morality; next a Jewdsh rabbi, ex- 
pounding the law; then a teacher of some Christian precept; and 
lastly, an ambassador of Christ, negotiating between God and man. 
The congregation undergo the correlate revolutions: first they are 
heathens; next, Jews; anon. Christians; and lastly, treating wdtli 
the ambassadors for salvation, on what is called the terms of the 
gospel. 'J hus, Proteus-like, they are all things in an hour. 



286 SERMON ON THE LAW 

said, that " there is no condemnation to them which are in 
Christ Jesus." The premises from which the Apostle 
drew this conclusion, are the same with those stated to 
you in this discourse. " Sin," says the Apostle, " shall 
not have dominion over you ; for ye are not under the law, 
but under grace." In the sixth and seventh chapters to 
the Romans, the Apostle taught them that '' they were not 
under the law," that they " were freed from it" — '' dead to 
it" — '' delivered from it." In the eighth chapter, first 
verse, he draws the above conclusion. What a pity that 
modern teachers should have added to and clogged the 
words of inspiration by such unauthorized sentences as 
the following : ^' Ye are not under the law" as a covenant 
of workSy but as a ride of life. Who ever read one word 
of the '' covenant of works" in the Bible, or of the Jewish 
law being a rule of life to the disciples of Christ? Of 
these you hear no more from the Bible than of the '' Sol- 
emn League" or '' St. Giles' Day." Yet, how conspicuous 
are these and kindred phrases in the theological discus- 
sions of these last three hundred years ! But, leaving such 
phrases to those who are better skilled in the use of them, 
and have more leisure to expound them, we shall briefly 
notice the reason commonly assigned for proposing the 
law as a rule of life to Christians. '^ If Christians are 
taught," say they, ''that they are delivered from the law, 
under it in no sense ; that they are dead to it, will not 
they be led to live rather a licentious life, live as they list ; 
and will not the non-professing world, hearing that they 
are not under the law of Moses, become more wicked, 
more immoral and profane?" Such is the chief of all the 
objections made against the doctrine inculcated respecting 
the abolition of the Jewish law, in respect of Christians, 
and also as this doctrine respects the Gentile or heathen 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 287 

world. We shrink not from a fair and full investigation 
of this subject. Truth being the only allowed object of 
all our inquiries, and the sole object of every Christian's 
inquiry, we should patiently hear all objections — coolly 
and dispassionately hear, examine and weigh all argu- 
ments "pro and con. 

That the first part of this objection is very natural, has 
been very often made, and strongly urged against the doc- 
trine we advocate, ^ve cheerfully acknowledge. As this 
objection was made against the Apostle's doctrine con- 
cerning the law, it affords a strong probability, at least, 
that our views on this subject correspond with his. We 
shall then hear how he stated and refuted it. Romans vi, 
15 : "What then ? Shall we sin because vfe are not under 
the law, but under grace?" Here he admits the objection, 
and in his answer incoiitestibly shows that Christians are 
not under the law, in any sense. If they were in any 
sense, now* was the time to say, '' We are not under the 
law in some sense, or under a certain part of it ; but in 
one sense we are under it, as a rule of life ? " We say the 
Apostle was here called upon, and in a certain sense 
bound, to say something like what our modern teachers 
say, if it had been warrantable. But he admits the doc- 
trine, and states the objection, leaving the doctrine une- 
quivocally established. He guards the doctrine against a 
licentious tendency thus : '' God forbid !" " How shall we 
that are dead to sin live any longer therein ?" and in the 
subsequent verses shoves the utter impossibility of any 
servant of God, or true Christian, so abusing the doctrine 
we have stated. Now, whether the ancient way of guard- 
ing the New Testament, or Gospel, against the charges of 
Antinomianism, or a licentious tendency, or the modern 
way, is best, methinks is easily decided among true disci- 



288 SEKMUX ON THE LAW. 

pies. Not so easy, however, among learned rabbis and 
doctors of the law. 

But, query, '' Is the law of Moses a rule of life to Chris- 
tians ?" An advocate of the popular doctrine replies, 
''Not all of it.'' Query again, What part of it? '' The 
ten commandments." Are these a rule of life to Chris- 
tians ? '' Yes." Should not, then. Christians sanctify the 
seventh day? ''No." Why so ? "Because Christ has 
not enjoined it." Oh ! then, the law, or ten command- 
ments, is not a rule of life to Christians any further than 
it is enjoined by Christ; so that reading the precepts in 
Moses' words, or hearing him utter them, does not oblige 
us to observe them — it is only what Christ says we must 
observe. So that an advocate for the popular doctrine, 
when closely pressed, can not maintain his ground. Let 
no man say we have proposed and answered the above 
queries as we pleased. If any other answers can be given 
by the advocates themselves than we have given, let them 
do it. But it is highly problematical whether telling Chris- 
tians that they are under the law will repress a licentious 
spirit. True Christians do not need it, as we have seen; 
" how shall they that are dead to sin, live any longer 
therein ?" And dare we tell professing Christians, as 
such, that the law as a rule of life is a condemning law ? 
If not, then what tendency will the mere affirmation that 
they are under a law as a rule of life ^vhich can not con- 
demn them, have to deter them from living as they list ? 
Upon the whole, the old ivay of guarding against immor- 
ality and licentiousness among Christians will, we appre- 
hend, be found the most consistent and efficacious. And 
he that has tried the old way and the new, will doubtless 
say, as was said of old, " No man also having drunk old 
wine, straightway desireth new; for he saith the old is 



SER3I0N ON THE LAW. . 289 

better." And, indeed, evei'\' attempt to guird llic Xew 
Testament, or the Gospel, by extrinsic means, against an 
immoral or licentious tendency, bears too strong a resem- 
blance to the policy of a certain preacher in Norwa^^ or 
Lapland, who told his hearers that " hell was a place of in- 
finite and incessant cold." When asked by an acquaint- 
ance from the south of Europe why he perverted the Scrip- 
tures, he replied, '^If.»he told his hearers in that cold cli- 
mate that hell was a place of excessive heat, he verily 
thought they would take no pains to avoid going there." 
But as to the licentious tendency this doctrine we in- 
culcate is supposed to have upon the non-professing or 
unbelieving world, it appears rather imaginary than real. 
It must, however, in the first instance be ascertained 
w^hether the Gentiles, not professing Christianity, were 
ever supposed or addressed by the Apostle sent to the 
Gentiles, as being under the law of Moses. We have 
under the second head of our discourse, particularly de- 
monstrated that the Gentiles were never under the law, 
either before or after their conversion. To what has been 
said on this subject we would add a sentence or two. It 
was prophesied of the Gentiles that they should be with- 
out law till Christ came. Isaiah xlii, iv. " And the isles 
shall ivait for his law." The chief glory which exalted the 
Jews above the Gentiles, which the Jews boasted of to the 
Gentiles, was that to ihem "pertained the adoption, the co- 
venants, and the giving of the law,'' They exclusively 
claimed the law as their own. And w^hy will not we let 
them have it, seeing him whose law the Gentiles waited 
for, is come, and has given us a more glorious law. What- 
ever was excellent in their law our Legislator has re-pro- 
mulgated. But shall we say that we are under the law as 

a rule of our Christian life, because some of its sublimest 
25 



290 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

moral and religious procepts have been re-promulgated by 
liim, who would not suffer one tittle of it to pass till he 
fulfilled it ! As well might we affirm that the British law 
which governed these States when colonies, is the rule of 
our political life ; because some of the most excellent laws 
of that code have been re-enacted by our legislators. Paul, 
the Apostle to the Gentiles, plainly acknowledged, in his 
addresses to them, that they were without law, aliens from 
the commonwealth of Israel, having no hope, etc. And 
of them he said, that " when the Gentiles, which have not 
the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, 
these having not the law are a law unto themselves." But, 
in so saying, does he or do we excuse their sins or lead 
them to suppose that they are thereby less obnoxious to 
the wrath to come? By no means, for we testify that even 
natural conscience accuses them of sin or wrong in their 
thoughts, words and actions, according to its knowledge. 
And, consequently. " as many as have sinned without law, 
shall also perish without law." In so testifying, do we 
cherish a licentious spirit ? By no means. For there stand 
a thousand monuments in this present world, independent 
of Jewish law, on which is inscribed these words, " For the 
wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodli- 
ness and unrighteousness of men." But one thing demands 
our observation, that the Apostle sent by heaven to preach 
to the Gentiles, in accvising them of sins of the deepest 
dye, and of the most malignant nature, dishonorable to 
God and destructive to themselves, never accuses them of 
any sin which the light of nature itself would not point 
out, or natural conscience testify to be wrong. Hence it 
is that in thelongblack catalogue of sins preferred against 
the Gentiles, is never to be found the crime of Sabbath- 
breaking, or of transgressing any of the peculiarities of 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 293 

Judaism. And now, what is the difference between an an- 
cient Greek and a modern American or European, who dis- 
believes the gospel? Under what law is the latter, under 
Avhich the former was not ? Was the former a sinner, and 
chargeable in the sight of God, as well as the latter ? Yes. 
Would not natural conscience, according to its means of 
know^ing right and wrong, or the w^ork of the law written in 
the heart, condemn the unbelieving Roman as well as the 
unbelieving American ? Most assuredly. And what is the 
difference? Not that the latter is under any law that the 
former ^vas not under ; but the means of discerning right 
and wrong in the latter are far superior to the former, and 
consequently their overthrow or ruin w^ill be more severe. 
In point of law or obligation there is no difference between 
the unbelieving American and the rudest barbarian ; though 
the former is polished wnth science, morals, etc., like the 
ancient Greeks and Romans, and the latter remains an un- 
cultivated savage. They will be judged and condemned 
by the same law which condemned the Roman who died 
nineteen hundred years ago. And the condemnation of 
the latter shall be more tolerable than the former, not by 
a milder law, but because his knowledge of right and wrong 
was much inferior to the former ; and having heard the 
gospel of salvation and disbelieved it, he adds to his nat- 
ural corruption and accumulated guilt, the sin of making 
God a liar, and preferring darkness to light, because he 
believed not the testimony of God. This is the sole dif- 
ference in respect of condemnation between the Indian and 
the most accomplished citizen. From these few remarks 
it will appear, we trust, obvious to every person who has 
an ear to distinguish truth from falsehood, that there is no 
condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus — that they 
are under no law that can condemn them — that A^who was 



292 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

made under the law, is become the end of the law for right- 
eousness to them — that being dead to sin, they should live 
no longer therein — that there is no necessity, but a glaring 
impropriety, iu teaching the law as a rule of life to Chris- 
tians—that all arguments in favor of it are founded on 
human opinion, and a mistaken view of the tendency of 
the gospel and Christian dispensation — that all objections 
against the doctrine we have stated, as licentious in its 
tendency, are totally groundless. '' For the grace of God 
that bringeth salvation, teacheth us tha.t denying ungodli- 
ness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously 
and godly in this present world. Looking for tliat blessed 
hope, the glorious appearing of the great God, even our 
Saviour, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us that he 
might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself 
a peculiar people, zealous of good ivorks,^' 

3d. In the third place, we conclude from the above 
premises that there is no necessity for preaching the law 
in order to prepare men for receiving the gospel. 

This conclusion perfectly corresponds with the commis- 
sion given by our Lord to the Apostles, and with their 
practice under that commission. " Go," saith he, '' into 
all the world, and preach the gospel unto every creature." 
" Teach the disciples to observe all things whatsoever I 
command you." Thus they were authorized to preach the 
gospel, not the laiv, to every creature. Thus they were con- 
stituted ministers of the New Testament, not of the OW. 
Now, the sacred history called the Acts of the Apostles, 
affords us the most satisfactory information on the method 
the Apostles preached under this commission; which, with 
the epistolary part of the New Testament, affords us the 
only successful, warrantable and acceptable method of 
preaching and teaching. In the Acts of the Apostles, we 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 293 

see the Apostles and first preachers paid the most scrupu- 
lous regard to the instructions they received from the great 
Prophet. They go forth into all nations, proclaiming the 
gospel to every creature ; but not one word of law-preach- 
ing in the whole of it. We have the substance of eight or 
ten sermons delivered by Paul and Peter to Jew^ and Gen- 
tiles, in the Acts of the Apostles, and not one precedent 
of preaching the law to prepare their hearers, whether 
Jews or Gentiles, for the reception of the gospel. 

This conclusion corresponds, in the next place, with the 
nature of the kingdom of heaven, or Christian Church, and 
with the means by which it is to be built and preserved in 
the world. The Christian dispensation is called " the min- 
istration of the Spirit/' and accordingly every thing in 
tlie salvation of the church is accomplished by the imme- 
diate energy of the Spirit. Jesus Christ taught his disci- 
ples that the testimony concerning himself was that only 
which the Spirit would use in converting such of the human 
family as should be saved. He was not to speak of him- 
self, but what he knew of Christ. Now, he was to con- 
yince the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; 
not by applying the law of Moses, but the facts concerning 
Christ, to the consciences of the people. The Spirit ac- 
companying the words which the Apostles preached, would 
convince the world of sin ; not by the ten precepts, but 
because they believed not on him — of righteousness, be- 
cause he w^ent to the Father — and of judgment, because 
the prince of this w^orld was judged by him. So that 
Christ, and not law, was the Alpha and Omega of their 
sermons; and this the Spirit made effectual to the salva- 
tion of thousands. Three thousand w^ere convinced of 
sin, of righteousness, and of judgment, in this precise way 
of hearing of Christ, on the day of Pentecost ; and w^e 



294 SERMON ON THE LAAV. 

read of many afterward. Indeed, we repeat it again, in 
the whole history of primitive preaching, we have not one 
example of preaching the law as preparatory to the 
preaching or reception of the gospel. 

This conclusion corresponds, in the third place, w^ith the 
fitness of things.''^ That men must be convinced of sin 
by some means, prior to a welcome reception of saving 
truth, is generally acknowledged. Now, as the gospel dis- 
pensation is the most perfect revelation of salvation, it 
must be supposed that it possesses the best means of ac- 
complishing every thing connected with the salvation of 
its subjects. It must, of course, possess the best means 
of convincing of sin. This truth, however, does not de- 
pend on mere supposition. The fact that the Holy Spirit 
makes an exclusive use of it in convincino; of sin, is a 
striking demonstration of its superior excellence for that 

^ Indeed we have yet to learn what advantage can accrue from 
preaching the so-called " moral law," to prepare sinners for the gos- 
pel. In the nature and fitness of things it can not prepare or dis- 
pose the mind to a belief of the gospel. The Apostle teaches us that 
''the law worlvctli wrath." This is inevitably its effect on every 
mind which does not believe the gospel. It irritates and excites the 
natural enmity of the mind against God. A clear exhibition of the 
divine character in the law, apart from the gospel, tends more to 
alienate than to reconcile the mind to God. When a preacher of the 
law has labored to show his hearers the immaculate holiness, the 
inflexible justice, the inviolate truth, and consuming jealousy of 
Jehovah, nianifested in the fiery law, supposing the gospel kept out 
of view, he has ratlier incapacitated and disqualified their minds 
from crediting the gospel or testimony of the condescension, love, 
mercy and grace of the eternal Father to mankind. How opposite 
is the divine wisdom to the wisdom of many modern scribes and 
teachers of the law ! They preach first the law to natural, fallen 
man, then the gospel. But He, who seeth not as man seeth, preached 
fli'st the gospel to fallen man, and afterward added the law, because 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 295 

purpose. But, independent of these considerations, it 
must be confessed tliat the gospel, or testimony concerning 
Christ, affords the fullest proof of divine justice and in- 
dignation against sin — it presents the clearest view of the 
demerit of sin, and of all divine perfections terrible to sin- 
ners — it exhibits the most alarming picture of human guilt 
and wretchedness that ever was given — and on these ac- 
counts is, of all means, the most suitable to convince of 
sin. It was already observed that the eternal Father con- 
demned sin in the person of his Son, more fully than it 
ever was, or could be, condemned in any other way. Sup- 
pose, for illustration, a king put to death his only son, in 
the most painful and ignominious way, for a crime against 
the government ; would not this fact be the best means of 
convincing his subjects of the evil of crime, and of the 

of transgressions, till the seed should come. Eternal life was prom- 
ised tlirough the seed, and the law added till the seed come. 

Nothing can be more inconsistent than the conduct of the law 
preachers. When they have echoed the thunders of Mount Sinai 
in the ears of their hearers, almost to drive them to despair, and to 
produce what they call ''legal repentance," then the}'^ begin to pull 
down the work of their own hands, by demonstrating the inefficacy, 
unprofitableness, and danger of legal repentance. Might they not as 
well at once imitate the Apostles and primitive preachers — preach 
the gospel, which, when received, produces repentance not to be re- 
pented of? Might they not preach Clirist crucified, in whom is man- 
ifested the wrath and judgment of God against sin; and his conde- 
scending love, mercy and grace to the sinner? Might they not, 
knowing the terror of the Lord, persuade men by the persuasives of 
the doctrine of reconciliation, rather than to increase their enmity, 
awaken their suspicions, and work wrath in their minds, by an un- 
lawful use of the law? But in order to this, their minds must be 
revolutionized — they must take up a cross which they at present re- 
fuse — and, wliat is difficult, indeed, they must unlearn what they 
have themselves tau^-ht others. 



296 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

king's detestation of it? Would not this fact be better 
than a thousand lectures upon the excellency of the law, 
and the sanctions of it? But every similitude of this kind 
falls infinitely short of affording a resemblance of the 
eternal Father, not sparing his Sole Delight when sin was 
but imputed to him. Having seen that this conclusion cor- 
responds with the commission given by the Redeemer to 
his Apostles — with their practice under that commission — 
with the nature of his kingdom, and with the fitness of 
things — one would suppose that no objection could be pre- 
ferred against it. But what doctrine of divine truth is it, 
against which objections, numerous, indeed, and strongly 
urged, and by men who profess to be zealous for the truth, 
have not been made ? Is it the doctrine of sovereign, 
free and abundant grace ? No. Is it the doctrine of the 
natural sinfulness and corruption of all men ? No, no. 
Against these many objections, yea, very many, are urged. 
We must not suppose, then, that this doctrine we now 
maintain shall be free from objections. We shall, then at- 
tend to some of those objections which have been made, 
or which we anticipate may be made against this con- 
clusion. 

It may, perhaps, be objected that there are some ex- 
pressions in the apostolic epistles which imply that the law 
was necessary to convince of sin, as pre-requisite to a 
welcome reception of the gospel; such as, ''By the law is 
the knowledge of sin," " for without the law sin 2vas dead.'' 
There is no authority from the original for varying the 
supplements in these two clauses. If it corresponds with 
the context, or with the analogy of faith, to supply tuas in 
the last clause, it doubtless corresponds as vfell in the first 
clause. But we lay no stress on the one or the other ; for 
before Christ came all knowledge of sin was by the law ; 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 297 

and '* the law entered that the offense might abound." For 
the Law was added to the promise of life, because of trans- 
gression, till the seed should come to whom the promise 
was made. Now, Ave would suppose that when the kSeedis 
come, and the time expired for which the law was added, 
it is superfluous to annex it to the gospel, for the same 
reason it was annexed to the promise made to Abraham. 
And although it should be allowed that Christians derive 
knowledge of sin from the law, it does not follow that it is 
the best means of communicating this knowledge — that 
Christians are dependent on it for this purpose — nor that 
it should be preached to unbelievers to prepare them for 
receiving the gospel. 

The seventh chapter to the Romans contains the fullest 
illustration of the once excellence and utility of the law, 
that is to be found in all the New Testament; and as this 
chapter will doubtless be the strong hold of our opponents, 
we shall make a remark or two on the contents of it. 

In the first place, then, let it be remembered that in the 
fourteenth verse of the preceding chapter, the Apostle 
boldly affirms that Christians are not under the law. To 
the conclusion of the sixth chapter he refutes an objection 
made to his assertion in the fourteenth verse. In the first 
six verses of the seventh chapter he repeats his assertion, 
and uses an apt similitude to illustrate it. Having, then, 
demonstrated that Christians are not under the law, in the 
seventh verse of the seventh chapter he states an objection 
which had been made, or he anticipated would be made, 
against his doctrine : '* If Christians are not under the law, 
if they are dead to it, if they are delivered from it, is it not 
a sinful thing ?'' ''Is the laAV sin, then?"' This objection 
against the nature of the law the Apostle removes in thi 
next six verses by showing the utility of the law in himself 



298 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

as a Jew, under that law ; and concludes that the law is holy, 
just and good. To the end of the chapter the Apostle 
gives an account of his experience us a Christian, freed 
from the hxw, and thus manifests the excellency of his new 
mind or nature by its correspondence to the holiness of the 
law; so that he most effectually removes the objection 
made against the law as. being sin, and at the same time 
establishes the fiict that Christians are delivered from it. 
Such evidently is the scope of the latter part of the sixth 
and all of the seventh chapter. We can not dismiss this 
chapter without observing, first, that the law, or that part 
of the law which the Apostle here speaks of, is what mod- 
ern teachers call '' the moral law." If so, then Christians 
are not under it; for the law which the Apostle affirms 
Christians are delivered from, in the sixth verse, in the 
seventh verse he s.hows it is not sin ; and the law which he 
shows is not sin, he demonstrates to be holy, just and 
good. So that here, as well as in the third chapter of his 
second epistle to the Corinthians, Christians are expressly 
said to be delivered from the so-called moral law ; and that 
it is abolished or done aw^ay, in respect of them. We 
must remark again, that before any thing said in this chap- 
ter respecting the utility or excellence of the law, can be 
urged as a precedent for what w^e condemn — namelj^, 
preaching the law as preparatory to the gospel, or a law 
work as preparatory to genuine conversion — it must be 
shown that the Apostle gave this account of his experi- 
ence under the law as preparative to his conversion. Oth- 
erwise, no objection can be made from any thing in this 
chapter to the conclusion before stated. But this can not 
be ; for the account we have of his conversion flatly con- 
tradicts such a supposition. Previous to his conversion he 
was a very devout man, in his own way — '^ touching the 



sp:r:mox on the law. 299 

rio'liteousness which was in the law he was blameless." 
See the account he gives of himself, Phil, iii, 4, 5, com- 
pared with Romans vii, 7, 12 ; Acts xxii, 1 ; xxiii, 1 ; from 
which we learn that he was tauejht accorclino; to the most 
perfect manner of the law, and was a Pharisee of the strict- 
est kind; had clear ideas of sin and righteousness; and, 
externally considered, was blameless, and lived in all good 
conscience until the day of his. conversion. But it was 
not the law, it was not a new discovery of its spirituality, 
but a discovery of Christ exalted, that convinced him of 
sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and instantane- 
ously converted him. So that nothing in his previous life 
or attainments, nothing of his experience as a Jew, noth- 
ing of his knowdedge of sin or of righteousness by the 
law previous to his conversion, can be urged in support of 
preaching the law or a law work to unbelievers, to prepare 
their mind for a welcome reception of the truth. 

When we shall have mentioned a favorite text of the law 
preachers, and considered it, we shall have done with ob- 
jections of this sort. It is Gallatians iii, 24. We shall 
cite from the twenty-third verse : " Before fiiith (Christ) 
came we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith 
which should afterward be revealed. Wherefore the law 
was our schoolmaster to hring us to Christ, that w^e might 
be justified by faith. But after that fjiith (Christ) is 
come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster." Methinks 
it looks rather like an insult to the understanding of any 
person skilled in the use of words, to offer a refutation of 
the use that is frequently made of the twenty-fourth verse. 
But let the censure rest upon.them who render it needful. 
Every smatterer in Greek knows that the twenty-fourth 
verse might read thus : '' The law was our schoolmaster 
until Christ" came ; and this reading unquestionably cor- 



800 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

responds with the context. Now, is it not most obvious 
that instead of countenancing law-preaching, this text and 
context condemn it ? The scope of it is to show that 
whatever use the Law served as a schoohnaster previous to 
Christ, it no longer serves that use. And now that Christ 
is come, we are no longer under it. We, see, then, that 
this conclusion not only corresponds with the commission 
to the Apostles — with the nature of Christ's kingdom — 
with the apostolic preaching, and Avith the fitness of things, 
but that no valid objection can be presented against it, 
from any thing in the apostolic epistles. 

Some, notwithstanding the scriptural plainness of this 
doctrine, may urge their own experience as contrary to it. 
It would, however, be as safe for Christians to make divine 
truth a test of their experience, and not their experience 
a test of divine truth. Some individuals have been awak- 
ened by the appearance of the Aurora Borealis, by an 
earthquake, by a thunder storm, by a dream, by sickness, 
etc. How inconsistent for one of these to affirm from his 
owm experience, that others must be awakened in the same 
w^ay ! How incompatible wdth truth for others to preach 
such occurrences as preliminary to saving conversion ! 

But the difference between ancient and modern conver- 
sions is so striking as to merit a.n observation or two. Now 
that the law is commonly preached to prepare men for 
Christ, it must be expected that modern conversions will be 
very systematic, and lingering in all. While preachers 
will not condescend to proclaim the glad tidings until they 
have driven their hearers almost to despair by the thun- 
ders of Mount Sinai — while they keep them in anxious 
suspense for a time, whether the wounds of conviction are 
deep enough; whether their sense of guilt is sufficiently 
acute ; Avhether their desires are sufficiently keen ; whether 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 801 

their fears are sufficiently strong ; in short, whether the 
h\w has had its full effect upon them ; I say, when this is 
the case, conversion work must go on slow ; and so it is 
rare to find some in a w^ay of being converted for years ; 
and, indeed, it is generally a work of many months. It 
would be w^ell, however, if, after all, it were commonly 
genuine. Contract these conversions w^ith those of which 
we read in the Acts of the Apostles, and what a contrast ! 
There we read of many converted in a day, who yester- 
day were as ignorant of law and gospel as the modern 
Hindoos or Birmans. To account for this we have only to 
consider and compare the different sorts of preaching and 
means, by which those were, and these are, effected. 

But some may yet inquire, are unbelievers under no law 
or obligation by which conviction may be communicated 
to their minds? Or they may ask, in other words, how 
does the testimony of Christ take hold of them ? And 
why do they welcome the gospel ? We have already shown 
that there is a law written on every human heart which is 
the foundation of both law and prophets, under which both 
ano:els and men exist ; whose oblio-ation is universal and 
eternal. It is inscribed, more or less distinctly, on every 
heathen's heart. It is sometimes called the law of nature, 
but more correctly called by the Apostle, conscience. This 
natural conscience, or sense of right and wrong, which all 
men possess, in different degrees, according to a variety 
of circumstances, but all, in some degree, is that in them 
which God addresses. This natural conscience is fitted to 
hear the voice of God, as exactly as the ear is fitted to 
hear sounds. This renders the savage inexcusable. For 
the invisible things of God, even his eternal power and 
godhead, are manifested to his conscience in the natural 
world. Now God addresses conscience in those whom he 



302 SERMON ON TUE LAW. 

brings to himself in a variety of ways. Sometimes even 
Avhere his word is come, he speaks by awful events, to the 
consciences of men. In this way he g^wakens inquiries 
that lead to the saving truth. Witness the jailer and his 
house, of whom we read in the Acts of the Apostles. God 
spake to his conscience by an earthquake, and put an in- 
quiry in his mouth that was answered to. his salvation and 
that of his house. That which fits the savaore to hear 
God's voice in the natural world, fits him, or the man of 
civilization, to hear his voice in the gospel, when it is sent 
to them in power. 

Are we to preach this law of nature, then ? some will in- 
quire ; or are we to show men that they possess this natu- 
ral conscience, previous to a proclamation of the glad tid- 
ings ? I would answer this question by proposing an- 
other. Am I to tell a man that he has an ear,, and explain 
to him the use of it, before I condescend to speak to him ? 
One answer suits both inquiries. We should consider the 
circumstances of any people before we address them. Do 
we address Jews ? Let us address them as the Apostles did. 
Persuade them, out of their own law, that Jesus is the 
Messiah. Do we address professed Christians ? Let us 
imitate the apostolic addresses in the epistles. Do we 
preach to Barbarians ? Let us address them as Paul 
preached to the Lycaonians. Speak to their consciences. 
Do we preach to polished infidels or idolaters ? Let us 
speak to them as Paul spake to the Athenians. Speak to 
their consciences. 

4th. A fourth conclusion, which is deducible from the 
above premises, is, that all arguments and motives, drawn 
from the law, or old Testament, to urge the disciples of 
Christ to baptize their infants ; to pay tithes to their teach- 
ers ; to observe holy days or religious fasts, as preparatory 



SERMON ON THE LAW. 303 

to the observance of the Lord's Supper ; to sanctify the 
seventh day; to enter into national covenants ; to establish 
any form of religion by civil law — and all reasons and mo- 
tives borrowed from the Jewish law, to excite the disciples 
of Christ to a compliance with or an imitation of Je^yish 
customs, are inconclusive, repugnant to Christianity, and 
fall ineffectual to the ground — not being enjoined or coun- 
tenanced by the authority of Jesus Christ. 

5th. In the last place, we are taught from all that has 
been said, to venerate, in the highest degree, the Lord 
Jesus Christ; to receive Him as the Great Prophet, of 
who Moses, in the law, and all the prophets did write. To 
receive him as the Lord our righteousness, and to pay the 
most punctilious regard to all his precepts and ordinances. 
'• If we continue in his word, then are we his disciples in- 
deed, and we shall know the truth, and the truth shall 
make us free— if the Son shall make us free, we shall be 
free indeed." 

It is remarkable how strong our attachments are to 
Moses as a teacher ; though Moses taught us to look for 
a greater prophet than he, and to hearken to him ! It is 
strange that three surprising incidents in the history of 
Moses would not arrest our attention and direct us to 
Christ. With all his moral excellence, unfeigned piety, 
and legislative dignity, he fell short of Canaan. So all 
\\ho cleave to him will come short of the heavenly rest ! 
His mortal remains, and his only, the Almighty buried in 
secret ; and yet we will not suifer his ashes to rest in peace ! 
He came down from heaven to give place to the Messiah, 
to lay down his commission at his feet ; and we will not ac- 
cept it ! Strange infatuation ! 

If Moses was faithful in Christ's house, as a servant, 
shall not Christ be faithful as a son over his own house ? 



304 SERMON ON THE LAW. 

Let us, as his disciples, believe all lie teaches, and practice 
all he enjoins in religion and morality; let us walk in all 
his commandments and ordinances ; and inquire, individu- 
ally, What lack I yet ? If we are then deficient, let us 
say, with the Jews, who disowned him, " We are Moses' 
disciples, but as for this fellow we know not whence he 
is." But let all remember that if he that despised Moses' 
law died without mercy, of how much sorer punishment, 
suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy who despised 
Christ as a teacher ! His commandments are not grievous 
to his disciples — his yoke is easy and his burden is light. 

Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart 
from all iniquity. Let us walk worthy of him. Let us 
take heed lest by our conduct we should represent Christ 
as the minister of sin. Let us not walk after the flesh, 
but after the Spirit ; and then we shall show that the right- 
eousness of the law is fulfilled in us. Then shall no occa- 
sion be given to the adversary to speak reproachfully. 
And if any should still urge the stale charge of Antinomi- 
anism, or afiirm that we lived in sin that grace might 
abound ; did evil that good might come ; or made void the 
law through faith ; let us put to silence the ignorance of 
foolish men, by adorning the doctrine we profess with a 
blameless conduct. Let us not merely rebut such insinu- 
ations with a — God forbid ! but evince, how shall we that 
are dead to sin, live any longer therein. 

May He that hath the key of David, who openeth and 
no man shutteth, and shutteth and none can open, open 
your hearts to receive the truth in the love of it, and in- 
cline you to walk in the light of it, and then ye shall know 
that the ways thereof are pleasantness, and all the paths 
thereof are peace ! Amen. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 305 



EXTRACTS 



PRESIDE:^^T CAMPBELL'S SERMOIS'S. 



I. 
Even before atmosphere existed, there was speech. 
God spake. I need not repeat the oracle, that broke the 
awful silence of eternit3\ The Greeks learned it early ; 
and reproduced it as a splendid illustration of true sublim- 
ity. How brief, terse, significant ! '^ Let there be light : '' 
And how different from the pompous verbiage, with which 
the human imagination, would have clothed this grand ex- 
pression of the divine will ! 

[^^The reader must not forget, that the Discourses from which the 
following extracts were taken, although addressed by President Camp- 
bell to promiscuous audiences, assembled in the village of Bethany, 
Ya., were doubtless spoken, under the influence of the impression — 
ever present, and which gave character to almost every public utter- 
ance of the last years of his long and useful life — that hig chief 
mission was to educate — to develope the youth intrusted to his 
care, in harmony with their origin, duty, and destiny. If it be asked, 
how far he succeeded in his mission, let the multitudes educated in 
the faith of a pure Gospel, who have left the earth rejoicing, answer. 
Let the multitudes who still live, to honor and revere the memory 
of their great teacher — answer; and let the still greater multitudes yet 
to be brought from darkness to light, under the influence proximate 
and remote, of his truthful, and, therefore, eloquent teachings, 
swell the just plaudit, to the faithful servant of God. — Ed.] 
26 



306 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

II. 

Is man poor in spiritual possessions ? It is not because 
God is unwilling to give, what his soul needs : but his 
spiritual poverty, is because he will not ask in faith — he 
will not receive — what his soul needs — his salvation re- 
quires. 

III. 

Solomon in his love-song — that beautiful and pure ex- 
pression of love — asks : " What is thy beloved, more than 
another beloved, Oh ! thou fairest among women ? " What 
is thy beloved, more than another beloved, that thou dost 
50 charge us ? My beloved is white and ruddy, the chief 
among ten thousand.'^ Again : " he is altogether lovely.'' 
This is4:he highest conception we can have, of beauty. He 
is the loveliest, the most attractive, among ten thousand. 

There is not purer sentiment, nor a higher conception, 
or expression of beauty in language, than that afforded by 
Solomon, in speaking of the Messiah. Yet this song, has 
been unfortunately, sexualized and carnalized, in our lan- 
guage, through the aberration and alienation of the human 
mind, which is too often the slave of passion. Beyond all 
doubt, this is a pure effusion — prompted by spiritual in- 
fluence — the expression of a spiritual conception of beauty 
— of absolutely perfect beauty, purity, and holiness. It is 
the spontaneous and legitimate offspring, of the subject of 
his contemplation, when he sang the song of the love which 
it expresses, is as far above all animal feeling, as the heav- 
ens are higher than the earth. To love and adore the in- 
spiring theme of Solomon's song, should be the study and 
delight of all. We ought to love, to live for, and to pur- 
sue, that which when attained, makes us holier and happier 
than before. There is no possibility of gaining that hap- 
piness, congenial to human nature, in its highest develop- 



EXTRACTS FIKJM Si^ R:\I0X3. 307 

merit, except in the love and service of the great chieftain 
— Christ Jesus the Lord. Any man may become happy, 
^vho will thoroughly study and perfectly appreciate, the 
glorious character of our Redeemer and Saviour. The 
knowledge necessary to this end, is obtained by under- 
standing what he is, what he has done, and what he has 
promised to do — all of which he will certainly acxjomplish; 
for not one word which he has spoken, shall fail of its pur- 
pose, until all shall be accomplished. 

IV. 

The sun may grow dim with years, the stars fall from 
their orbits, the rocks crumble to dust, but spirits can not 
cease to exist. They had a beginning, but they can never 
have an end. Spirits never, never die. 

V. 

It requires a perfect gentleman, to make a Christian. I 
do not mean a genteel man. There is a wide difference, 
between a gentleman, and a man merely genteel. A true 
gentleman, must possess Christianity — the spirit of God, 
gentleness, purity of thought, purity of speech, purity of 
action. A man may be polite, and not be a gentleman, 
but he can not be a gentleman, without being polite. He 
may be genteel and not be a Christian ; but he can not be 
a Christian, without being both genteel and gentlemanly. 

VI. 

Many who sit in the highest seats, and live in the enjoy- 
ment of earth's greatest honors, are apparently as far from 
God in spirit, as they are above the humblest citizen in so- 
cial position. " But hath not God chosen the poor of this 
world, rich* in faith, and heirs of the kingdom, which he 



30S EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

hath promised to them that love him?" The kingdom and 
the high seats for the poor are not of this world. " Blessed 
are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.'' 

VII. 

The Bible in its entirety, is essential to the education — 
the development of man. The fall of man, is a lesson to 
man — it teaches him the power of temptation, and his own 
frailty. The recovery of man is another lesson, teaching 
him the goodness of God. These, with its precepts and 
promises, its threats, and its exhortations, w^ill be the cause 
of salvation, to every one that walketh in the fear of the 
Lord, and the light of religion. 

VIII. 

The principles of creation are : first, goodness, the ac- 
tuating : second, wisdom, the directing : third, power, the 
executive principle. Creator is a relative term ; for there 
can not be a creator, without a creature. Creator and Je- 
hovah, are relatively different, although they both designate 
the same being. Jehovah was before any thing in heaven 
or earth — being absolute and eternal. 

IX. 

There is a vast deal more of Bible reading, in these 
latter days, for the purpose of enabling men to stand erect 
upon a particular point of faith, peculiar to themselves or 
their creed, than with the view of obtaining a clear and 
unbiased understanding, and truthful appreciation, of the 
intent and meaning of Holy Writ. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 309 

X. 

The briglitness of the sun at noonday, dazzles the ej^e 

of man ; yet what is it, but the shadow of the glory of 

God? 

XI. 

We have in the Holy Scriptures, every form of expres- 
sion. We have not only poetry and prose, precepts, prom- 
ises and threats ; but all the various forms and usages of 
human speech, seem to be employed in some part of the 
sacred volume. It is very proper that this should be so. 
For this book is addressed to man, by Him wdio alone 
comprehends man — comprehends him in his relations to 
his fellow man and his Creator, to time and eternity. 

It is worthy •of observation, that in the Bible as ad- 
dressed to man, God does not deal in abstractions. There 
is not what I conceive or regard to be an abstraction — a 
speculative view, in the whole volume. If there be any 
thing in its matter, which may seem at first view to be 
rather abstract in its nature, the illusion disappears, in the 
light which follows the concentrated study — the intelligent 
investigation of the beautiful truths, and practical realities, 
found throughout the living oracles of truth. 

XII. 

There is a variety of modes, by which we arrive at a 
T^roper appreciation and enjoyment of things. It is fre- 
quently important to study out a true stand point, from 
w^hich to survey an earthly scene. There is alv^ays a 
point of observation, from w^hich a beautiful landscape ap- 
pears to more advantage, than from any other. It is so 
with the lessons taught by the sacred volume. If we de- 
sire to study nature and nature's God, as revealed in the 
Bible, we take a certain favorable point of observation. 



310 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

If we desire to contemplate Him as a conservator, we 
assume another position. If we desire to view Him in the 
glorious attributes and characteristics of the Redeemer 
and friend of man, in which He figures harmoniously with 
the genius of human nature, we seek still another point 
of observation. But, study Him as we will, in nature or 
revelation, providence or redemption, we can find no point 
of observation, from which a shadow, rests upon His be- 
nevolence. 

xnr. 

Some persons, perhaps thoughtlessly, call this earth, the 
world. It is not the w^orld ; for that is immeasurably 
larger than the earth. JSTor does this globe constitute the 
universe. Planetary systems like ours, -almost without 
number, or a world of worlds, are required to compose the 
universe, moving round the eternal center, whose eflfulgence 
illumines creation. 

The impression prevails in many minds, that the earth 
is to be annihilated. Such is not our belief. There is a 
vast difference between annihilation, and change, or gen- 
eral alteration. This earth will, unquestionably be burned, 
yet, through the process of variation, and reconstruction 
of its elements, God will fashion the earth and heavens 
anew, and fill them with tenants to glorify His name for- 
ever. 

XIV. 

It is the faith of every truly good man, that his greatest 
happiness, consists in his usefulness to society. Honor- 
able labor, like virtue is its own reward. '' He that plant- 
eth, and he that watereth are one, and every man shall re- 
ceive his own reward, according to his own labor.^^ 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 311 

XV. 

True eloquence, excites grand and humanizing emo- 
tions in the soul of man. There is effective eloquence in 
the sincere prayer of a contrite spirit; and there is elo- 
quence in the beggar's petition, when characterized by 

truth 

XYI. 

The Devil tells the truth, when it answers his purpose 
better than a lie. If any man doubt this, let him study 
the record of his Satanic majesty, as given in the Bible. 
He has always been well armed with scripture, in his deal- 
ings with man, and does not always misquote the language 
of the inspired authors. 

XYII. 

The Pope of Rome, claims the power to open and shut 
both heaven and hell. He proclaims the terrible doctrine 
that he has the ability to forgive sins by proxy — assum- 
ing to be the Yicar of Christ, with power to open the 
gates of Paradise to any man, good or bad, at his mere 
volition. Nor can it be successfully denied, that in the 
exercise of this pretended pov>^er, he is often actuated by 
motives purely mercenary. His church is remarkably de- 
vout, though sadly deluded ; and it is the studied policy 
of the priesthood, to keep it so. They have not far to 
look for the forgiveness of sins, certainly not above the 
earth, nor beyond the priest. They believe the pope to 
be the great official of the kingdom of Christ — possessed 
of the keys of both heaven and perdition, with an author- 
ty not only to forgive sins, but to grant indulgences for 
the commission of sins, with absolute impunity: which 
w^as, in former ages, one chief source of the almost fabu- 
lous revenues of the papal establishment. It is assumed 
by the pope, and conceded by his deluded followers, that 



312 EXTRACTS FllOM SERMONS. 

he shapes the destiny of men, in reference to eternity, 
and withers by his curse, the earthly fortunes of his re- 
bellious subjects. 

There never was — there never can be — any thing more 
deleterious to the spiritual well-being of humanity — more 
utterly at war with true Christianity, than the assump- 
tions, usurpations and dogmas of the popedom. We be- 
lieve implicitly, in the prophetic revelations of the Bible, 
and if we understand their purport, the end, the downfall 
of the pope's authority, is neither improbable nor remote. 
When once the spell of bigotry is broken, and the light 
of the Gospel permeates the minds and hearts of the de- 
luded masses, this monster, this arrogant usurper and 
tyrant, will totter on his throne, and will subsist there- 
after, if at all, upon the charity, and not upon the en- 
forced tribute of an enlightened people. 

XVIIT. 

The universe itself, is but the offspring of God's love. 
It was not created simply because he had the wisdom, and 
the power to do it. The elem.ent of love entered into the 
intention, characterized the execution, and approved the 
completion of his labors — all of which were perfect in 
the Divine conception, before the mighty fiat which broke 
the silence of eternity and illuminated the world w^as 
spoken. 

XIX. 

The human mind becomes tired of every thing. Kings 
weary of crowns and empires, and -long for something 
else. So children cry for this toy and that bauble, but 
the wish is no sooner gratified, than the object of passion- 
ate desire is thrown aside and forgotten. Such is life 
from the cradle to the grave ! And what are human be- 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 313 

ings, mj' friends, young or old, but children in the pri- 
mary school of God? — proving, by their lives, that there 
is nothing finite — terrestrial or celestial — nothing short 
of the spiritual and infinite, that can satisfy the cravings 
of the human heart — the longings of the immortal spirit. 

XX. 

Properly read and understood, the Bible, from Genesis 
to Revelations, does not present two conflicting or contra- 
dictory statements. Nevertheless, men — wicked and am- 
bitious men, have tried to set Moses against Moses, and 
Joshua against Joshua. Bold attempts have been made 
to overthrow the Old Testament by the New Testament, 
and the Prophets have been summoned to invalidate the 
Apostles : still the Law and the Gospel stand together — 
a monument of eternal truth. The grand fact, that no one 
has ever found an error in the oracles of truth, consti- 
tutes a triumphant commentary upon the whole volume of 
God's Word. 

a XXI. 

The blue vault of heaven, without a single star, declares 
the glory of God's throne, while systems of planets, in 
the order and perfection of their being, are 

'' Forever singing, as they shine, 
The hand that made us is divine." 

XXII. 

The Bible is a perfect chart for the entire voyage of 
life. Beyond that it is of no value. It is not adapted to 
man in Heaven or Hell. 

XXIII. , 

There is an element in man's nature, called selfishness. 

Its true signification is often perverted. Man must have 

& pure selfishness in order to love himself as he ought to 
27 



314 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

do — not inordinately. What says the law of God ? " Thou 
shalt love thy neighbor as thyself^' — no more, no less. 

XXIV. 
Man cheats himself when he rebels against the God that 
made him. God's government loses nothing, he loses 
every thing. He w4io seeks happiness in rebellion against 
God, is as wise as he who would seek riches by robbing 
himself. 

XXV. 

There was no necessity for prayer in the Adamic state. 
All was adoration and admiration. God gave all things 
needful, to Adam and Eve — kept their cup full to over- 
flowing — with the bounties of his benevolent and bene- 
ficent hand, until by eating the forbidden fruit, they vio- 
lated the first grand charter of immortality. Then it be- 
came necessary for fallen man to pray for the forgiveness 
of his sins. 

XXVI. 
Light is a magnificent creation. Some presume to say 
it never was created, but is an everlasting emanation from 
the glory of God. We have material, and immaterial light 
— the light of the sun, and the light of knowledge — and 
besides these, there is the light of the Spirit, as far above 
all other light, as is the sun's meridian brightness, above 
that of the merest spark perceptible to the eye of man. 

XXVII. 

The book of God is as well adapted to the peasant as to 
the philosopher. It is a chart for all humanity — all can 
be saved and made happy by it. The maturity of the 
greatest mind and the daw^ning intellect of childhood, are 
instructed by its precepts, and made wise unto salvation. 



EXTKACTS FROM SERMONS. olo 

The adaptation of light to the human eye, has been the 
wonder of the wise, yet it is not more perfect, than is the 
adaptation of the Bible to the mind and heart of humanity. 

XXVIII. 

Hope never looks back. It never sees the present, nor 
the past. Hope ever' lives in the future. Love never sees 
the true merely, nor the good merely ; but it always sees 
the beautiful. Beauty is the true object of love. We be- 
lieve the truth whether good or bad, we love the beautiful 
everywhere. We look with the eye of faith down the vista 
of futurity and hope for joys eternal — immutable. 

XXIX. 

I never see the tear, trembling upon the eyelid of the 
grief-stricken mother, without thinking of the love of God. 

XXX. 

We can reason to a certain point, and there we stop for- 
ever. The carpenter's rule is two feet long — your reason 
is two feet long. He can tell you the solid or superficial 
contents of a piece of wood or other material, but neither 
the carpenter's rule nor your reason, can originate any 
thing — they only measure what already exists. Reason 
therefore, never originated a principle in religion, nor 
saved a human soul. It is faith, I repeat, it is faith that 
saves, and anchors the soul of man, in the heaven of eter- 
nal bliss. 

XXXI. 

Every passion of the human soul is a lawyer. When 
once enlisted, the cause must be gained, the point carried, 
right or wrong. 



316 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

XXXII. 

God so loved the world, as to give his own Son — the be- 
loved — to save it. The love of God is the parent of the 
universe. It passes all understanding. We may apprehend, 
but can never comprehend it. No man has scaled its 
heights, nor fathomed its depths. No language can ex- 
press it. It is the gift alone that reveals it. 

XXXIII. 

The fruits of Bible reading, are : first, civilization ; sec- 
ond, moralization ; third, humanization ; fourth, salvation. 

XXXIV. 
The devil is just as orthodox, as the angels Gabriel or 
Uriel ; and yet a rebel — a high-handed rebel against God, 
and the enemy of man ; and the ruling spirit of the world's 
anarchy. 

XXXV. 

The whole machinery of the universe, in its silent and 
sublime workings, the upheaval of towering mountains, by 
fiery volcanoes, from the great deep, the thunder and light- 
ning of heaven, the quaking of earth and the fury of mighty 
waters, one and all are to God, but as the bubble which 
lives for a moment, then bursts into annihilation. 

XXXVI. 

Every thing had its beginning in a miracle. Of course 
we do not refer to the incipiency of the mere business of 
man in this life, but in all the dispensations of Heaven, 
every thing began by a miracle. There was no antece- 
dent matter out of which to create light. The earth and 
all its tenantries had their origin in a miracle — began by 
a positive fiat of the Omnipotent Will. This idea gives to 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 317 

the mind the pundum saliens, and a due appreciation of 
the Christian institution. 

XXXVII. 

The existence of hierarchies, aristocratic distinctions 
and political honors in the church, is one of the greatest 
monstrosities ever tolerated by mankind. In the Roman 
church, how many have worn the title and honors of 
" Lord Bishop ! '' But a certain learned and good man 
once wrote, that there is a vast diflFerence between " Lord 
Bishop^' and the Lord's Bishop, while only a single let- 
ter in the orthography prevented them from being the 
same. Now these personages were not made Bishops by 
the state, and we maintain, that to give a man a high po- 
sition in the political department, for no other reason, than 
that he possesses high ecclesiastical distinction, is to des- 
ecrate the one and impair the dignity of the other. It is 
both unfortunate for the church and unfortunate for the 
state, and if we would have each of these departments so 
organized, as to promote the prosperity, dignity and glory 
of a nation, they should be kept entirely distinct and sep- 
arate. 

XXXVIII. 

In the Bible we have presented to us the Father, Son 
and Holy Spirit — as being one in nature, but different in 
ofl&ce. Thus, for reasons which w^e can not fathom in this 
life, our knowledge of God has been revealed to us in 
three departments, each of which possesses the entire 
nature of divinity. The Hebrew name Jehovah, is the 
only word we-krfow of in language, that stands in no re- 
lation to time, place or circumstance. There is no other 
name or term, that has not relation to something in this 
world. A good man implies a bad man — a small man, a 
large one — a wise man, a simpleton. We must, however, 



318 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

have a fulcrum for our lever, hence, we have first a rev- 
elation of God, in His absolute nature, under the name 
Jehovah. It signifies an absolute, self-existing being 
God does not. The word means the Good One, hence, it 
is a relative term ; as there could be no good without the 
bad, any more than there could be great men if all were 
alike. 

XXXIX. 

Imagination is often spoken of as an active, originating 
power of the human mind. We admit its activity, but 
does it originate or produce any thing but an image? The 
word imagination is derived from imagOj which signifies an 
image. The very word presupposes an original and is 
suggestive of an image. If it create at all, it is not a 
reality, an entity, but merely an image, or modifies, com- 
bines or transposes our previous conceptions, sometimes 
presenting grotesque, ludicrous or startling pictures, which, 
however novel in their character, contain no element not 
previously presented to the mind. We are indebted to 
sense for the mental image of things present, to imagi- 
nation for the picture of things absent. 

To the painter or sculptor imagination is indispensable. 
The more vivid the mental picture of the ideal, which he 
proposes to transfer to the canvas, or to impress upon 
the marble, the more likely is he to succeed in his beau- 
tiful art, while the poet's fame is born of the word pic- 
tures, which he impresses upon the minds of his readers, 
and the more true to nature his pictures are, the greater 
his success, the wider his fame. 

But the poet, the painter, and the sculptor must confine 
themselves to their legitimate domain. There is a terri- 
tory which art must not invade, nor imagination desecrate. 
Neither the painter's pencil, the sculptor's chisel, nor the 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 819 

poet's pen, can produce an acceptable image of that which 
tlie finite mind can not comprehend. 

We know it is no uncommon thing for members of the 
Ixoraan Church, to decorate the walls of their dwellings, 
with what they call pictures of the Saviour, and they con- 
sider it proof of their piety, to wear upon their persons, 
diminutive images (so called) of the same glorious person- 
age; ascribing to them a sort of amniotic power, against 
the ills of life. Now, we presume to say that this practice 
is pernicious, and highly derogatory to Christian character. 
The idea of attempting to embody the sublime character- 
istics of the Son of God, in a diminutive picture, or of 
practically ascribing to any artist, however skillful, the 
power to fix upon ivory or any other material, an expres- 
sion of the divine benevolence, calculated to enlarge a 
Christian's conception of his worthiness, is too absurd for 
notice. Our minds are too contracted to measure even 
the proportions of that humanity, which was magnified by 
the presence of the divine nature, our hearts too narrow 
to receive the full impression of His love, even with the 
world for His theater, and our lives are too short to illus- 
trate as it should be done, the virtues of His religion, 
which is at last but the teaching of His life — the impress 
of His character. How unworthy then of a Christian is 
it, to wear upon an amulet, a pretended image of Him, 
who fills boundless space with His presence, and eternity 
with His duration. 

XL. 

The idea that without the shedding of blood, there is 
no remission of sins, was monumenteJ, in the mental con- 
stitution of man, from the sacrifice of righteous Abel, to 
that of Calvary; of which all antecedent sacrifices, were 
but types. This, with the prophetic history of the Jewish 



320 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

people, which history is yet being enacted on the world's 
grand theater of ac^tion, in exact fulfilment of the pre- 
dictions of its inspired authors, and the continued obsei-v- 
ance of the Lord's supper for eighteen hundred years, in all 
countries, and by all i-eligionists, and always for the same 
pui'pose, are splendid, monumental proofs, of the divine 
authenticity of the scriptures, against which the waves of 
skepticism and infidelity, have dashed and broken in vain, 
for nearly two thousand years. 

XLI. 

Every science has its peculiar terms. You can not 
measure an angle, unless you possess a knowledge of the 
science of such measurement; and so, throughout all the 
departments of science, whether mathematical or founded 
on experiment and observation. Hence, no person can 
expect to prosecute successfully the study of the sciences, 
without first becoming familiar with the nomenclature of 
each. 

Now we hold that Christianity has a vocabulary of 
terms, just as distinct and definite, as any thing pictured 
to the eye of man. It is but too true, however, that the 
Christian Church, as the current phraseology has it, pos- 
sesses a terminology, strictly partisan. Should you meet 
a man on the highway, and engage in conversation with 
him upon the subject of the Christian religion, you are 
able, if at all versed in the history of the different reli- 
gious denominations, to tell with almost absolute certainty, 
to what family of religionists he belongs. This is a verj 
unfortunate and very lamentable state of things. The 
church in this respect, forcibly reminds us of the contin- 
ent of Europe. The Italian, who crosses tlie line, which 
separates his country from France, finds himself a stran- 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 321 

ger, unable to communicate intelligibly with his near 
neighbors. It is so Avith a Frenchman, who crosses the 
line which separates France from Spain. In England, you 
find a state of things existing, presenting a still more ex- 
act parallel to the church; for the dialects of different 
shires, are wholly unintelligible to their nearest neighbors. 
This state of things ought not to be; hence we advocate 
the use of that terminology, consecrated by the Apostles 
in their teachings, which ought to be thoroughly under- 
stood by every Bible student. It is not necessary to add 
to it, for all we know of religion is learned from their 
teachings, and we have no legitimate use for any language 
not found in their instructions. 

XLH. 

Repentance is not merely regret and sorrow for past 
sins, but a positive reformation in one's character ; that is, 
in his thoughts, motives, and actions. Hence death-bed 
repentances are, from the nature of things, of but little 
value. Any one, with the whip on his back, will cry for 
mercy. Any one about to pay the penalty for some dere- 
liction of duty, will be very penitent and ready to make 
any number of vows for future good behavior. But nO 
sooner is he freed from immediate punishment, than he 
falls back, as the dog returns to his vomit, or the sow to 
her w^allow in the mire. How many (supposed) death bed 
repentances we have, which would have passed for genu- 
ine, and have been recorded as such, had it not been for 
the recovery of the persons who made them. Now, almost 
if not quite ninety-nine times out of a hundred, those who 
repent, upon what they believe to be their death-beds re- 
lapse to their former state. Hence we say, that kind of 
repentance is of little or no value. Grief of mind, re- 



322 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

morse of conscience, distressing revulsions of feeling, un- 
less accompanied by an absolute change of purpose, and 
a positive reformation of life, do not constitute what we 
understand as evangelical repentance, 

XLIII. 

We have something above faith, and that is knowl- 
edge. A high degree of belief approximates knowledge 
and arrives at a partial appreciation of realities. There 
is no knowledge in philosophy, because it is speculative. 
The facts, however, on which it is founded are realities, 
and we can perceive and appreciate them as such. Hence 
facts become the great material of every system of knowl- 
edge. In the very nature of things, Christianity had to 
be presented in facts. We have no theory in the Bible — 
no theory in the government founded on its principles, 
and those that theorize on the subject convert the reali- 
ties of the Bible into mere gas which no man can lay 
hold of. No man can live on gas, nor can he live upon 
spiritual ideas. If a man w^as as orthodox as St. Paul, 
no theory could save his soul. There must be a motive 
power in knowledge. This power theories can not have. 
There is no potency in theories, but there is power in 
facts. 

XLIV. 

In tracing the elements of the Bible, we find that they 
are presented in three ages — in three dispensations. ^J'he 
w^ord '' age " originally had reference to the life of man. 
Afterward, its latitude and longitude, with respect to time, 
were greatly enlarged. The Greeks had the expression 
" Hore of ao;es," which with us is translated '' forever and 
ever" — a strange repetition understood to represent eter- 
nity. Man can not go beyond this. Forever and ever, 



JEXTRACT3 FROM SERMONS. 323 

is a mere repetition, indicating the incomprehensibility of 
eternity. Such terms and such ideas give character to 
what is called transcendental philosophy — being trans- 
cendent, because beyond the area of the human under- 
standing. 

XLY. 
A man is in a saved state, when he embraces Chris- 
tianity, but he must afterward show forth fruits in harmony 
with that state. There is a vast difference between an 
American citizen, legally so — and an American citizen in 
the faithful and constant discharge of all his duties as 
such. They a^e equally citizens, but diverse in character, 
and in their claim to the respect and confidence, of the 
government and the people. It is in the kingdom of 
Christ, as in the kingdoms of the world. 

XLVI. 
We have lost all faith in missions to the Jews, because 
they have been for centuries and centuries, without the 
Light of the world. The candlestick was removed from 
their midst, by the Messiah. The Gentiles now have the 
sway ; and the Jewish people are to remain as they are, 
until the fullness of the time allotted to the Gentiles, has 
been fulfilled. Paul, as if in corroboration of this view, 
says : *' that blindness in part has happened to Israel un- 
til the fullness of the Gentiles be come in." Therefore, we 
say no one can expect a successful effort to convert the 
Jews. It is true that if we go into Judea and Jerusalem, 
w^e meet a great many Gentiles traveling between impor- 
tant points, and these may fall under missionary influence ; 
but to go into Judea and Jerusalem to convert the Jews, 
would be a hopeless expenditure of time and labor. They 
are destined to continue in their present condition, until 



324 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

the Gentiles are fully evangelized, and brought into the 
enjoyment, of all the rights and immunities, of the Mes- 
siah's kingdom. Up to this time the Jews will remain a 
scattered people, and then be admitted into the great fam- 
ily of the redeemed. These matters are fully developed 
by the Apostle Paul, and are well w^orthy to be studied 
and remembered. 

XLVir. 

Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, consists in ascrib- 
ing to demoniacal influence, what is usually ascribed to the 
influence of the Holy Spirit. This demoniacal power, is 
taken in the malam partem sense, but it has also a honam 
partem sense, as the Romans have it. Blasphemy, may 
be voluntary or involuntary. The verb blaspheme (noun 
blasphemy) is composed of two Greek words, which signify 
to speak against, or to the injury of, God. Blasphemy has 
an appropriate illustration in profane swearing. Men ac- 
customed to profane swearing, are called blasphemers — 
guilty of speaking to the injury and disgrace of themselves, 
and the contempt and disdain of God. But -blasphemy 
against the Holy Spirit, has been considered a subject of 
great moment, and the reason why, is worthy of especial 
notice. We have blasphemy against the Father, against 
the Son, and against the Holy Spirit. The special subject 
of unpardonable sin, is connected with the Holy Spirit. 
And why blasphemy against the latter should be less par- 
donable, than against the Father or the Son, is a question 
for consideration. 

We have three revelations of Divinity. First : in the 
Patriarchal and Jewish institutions, God was know^n only 
as Jehovah Elohim. It was possible that a person sinning 
against Him, might be pardoned under the second dispen- 
sation — the dispensation of the Son — the Incarnate Word. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 325 

There ^vas a more liberal exercise of pardon under him, 
than under the Jewish Theocracy. God the Father, sent 
the Son, and the Son sent the Holy Spirit, the last and 
crowning manifestation of Divinity. There was no Medi- 
ator after him, and blasphemy against him was therefore 
beyond the reach of pardon. 

The sin of blasphemy under the Theocracy, might be 
pardoned under the merciful reign of the Christocracy ; 
and the blasphemer under the Christocracy, might be par- 
doned, saved, and sanctified, through the Holy Spirit ; but 
beyond this, there was no forgiveness — no possible pardon, 
in harmony with justice, honor, and divine authority. 
Throughout all Christendom — Greek, Roman, and Pro- 
testant — blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, is considered 
the unpardonable sin. 

XLVIII. 

A Greek Philosopher said there were three great ques- 
tions in the world: first: what ami? second: whence 
come I ? third : whither go I ? Ages would not have suf- 
ficed philosophy to answer these questions ; but happily 
for us, the Bible solves them all. It is an infallible oracle, 
revealing creation and every thing appertaining to man, 
from Adam and Eve in Paradise, down to the last scene, 
of the last act, in the drama of man's eternal existence. . 

XLIX. 

'' All in all " — omnipotent, omnipresent, everlasting. 
There is a sublime significance in these words. How 
much eloquence they possess ! A splendid oracle in three 
monosyllables ! In all power, in all space, in all time, the 
first and the last, the Alpha and Omega ! No man has 
scaled the hights, or fathomed the depths of this sublime 
idea. 



326 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

L. 

It is perfectly natural for man to think. We think a 
great deal ; but many of our thoughts are very shallow. 
We think more of the outward man, than of the inner or 
innermost man. Knowing as we do, that the outward man 
is always changing, that man wears out a house of flesh 
every seven years of his life, and that the innermost man 
is unchangable, immortal, we can have no excuse for think- 
ing or acting thus unwisely. 

LI. 

God is said to inhabit eternity. Yet he sustains and 
preserves all things by his will. We talk of mechanical 
and other powers, but there is no power in the grand and 
various machinery of the universe, but the absolute will — 
the will of Jehovah. This will moves all things. It was 
the motive power of the first fiat, and will be of the final 
doom of earth and its tenantries. 

LII. 

The ultimate end of all true philosophy is to teach man 
two lessons — himself and his Creator. 

LIII. 

The richest men I have ever known, have become such 
by giving. The more knowledge we give — the more wis- 
dom we impart to the wise, and understanding to the fool- 
ish, the more we have. 

LIV. 

God makes men happy, in proportion to their work. In 
the precise ratio of our progress in honorable labor will 
we grow in true happiness; and the converse of this prop- 
osition is equally true. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 327 

LY. 

To be instrumental, in the salvation of one human soul, 
is a greater achievement, than that of the Macedonian 
chief, who conquered the world, and then wept that the 
field of his ambition was exhausted. How w^retched is 
that man, who sets his heart upon that which ceases to be. 
If universal experience had not proved it, reason would 
teach that the perishing things of time and sense could 
not in the nature of things, satisfy the eternal spirit of 
man. 

LVI. 

Christianity is the only lever that lifts man from earth 
to the temple of the Great Jehovah, where there is no sor- 
row — no sadness — not a hope disappointed, nor a wish un- 
gratified. 

LVII. 

Those who refuse to come to Christ will be banished 
into eternal darkness — w^hose blackness shall never be 
dispelled by a single ray of hope. Can there be any thing 
more aw^ful to contemplate, than tomb-like, total darkness — 
and that forever? It is spoken of in the Bible as outer 
darkness. Assuredly, my friends, there is a darkness, in- 
finitely horrible, as there is a light superbly sublime. 

LVIII. 

A mystery is not necessarily an incomprehensible thing. 
It is somethino; we do not know — a secret. The revelation 
of the secret, annihilates the mystery, as it then ceases to 
be an unknown thing. 

LIX. 

From the time Protestantism, burst asunder the bonds 
of superstition and ecclesiastical tyranny, it has exerted 
a vitalizing, energizing power, and an elevating, refining 



328 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

influence, over every mind coming within the scope of its 
influence. 

LX. 

A man may be king of nations — he may be the leader 
of legions. Yet, if he fail to control himself, his greatness 
sinks into insignificance beside the true greatness, the 
moral heroism of him, who in all cases governs his pas- 
sions, and holds himself in subjection to reason, as taught 
by religion. 

LXI. 

Death ! There is nothing more terrible ! It is so by the 
constitution of man's nature. Of all the thoughts, that 
force themselves upon man's attention, not one is less wel- 
come, not one is more repugnant to his feelings. It is 
terrible in itself — it is still more so as the w^ages of sin. 
Yes ! it was sin that brought desolation and ruin into Par- 
adise, and death into the w^orld. It is sometimes asked, 
why did God create so much of life — of germ and bud — 
of bloom and beauty, to perish and decay? This is a 
part of the divine typography. Life suggests death — the 
inevitable doom of every denizen of earth ; but death and 
the grave have yielded up the sting and the victory to Him 
who rose a triumphant Conqueror, and brought life and 
immortality to light. 

LXII. 

It is said, the sweetest wine, makes the sourest vinegar, 
so the purest and holiest of all feelings — religious love, 
generates the bitterest hatred, between rival or warring 
churches. But is religion in fault? Is not the fault in 
the passionate animalism, the depravity of ftillen man ? 
We pause — but not for a reply. The cause of such a 
state of things, is in the alienated feelings of man, as re- 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 329 

spects God — the devil ruling liim through the passions of 
the flesh. 

LXIII. 

As we rise in this world from faith to faith so in heaven, 
we rise from glory to glor3\ There is no limit — no ces- 
sation of adoration or admiration, in tlie glorification of 
God. The pleasure will grow with the employment. Our 
joy will increase continually, and so on from age to age 
throughout the cvcles of a boundless future. There will 
be more true happiness in every succeeding hour of the 
presence and dominion of the Eternal Father, than in the 
perpetual enj 'yment of all the honors and emoluments 
within the gift of the mightiest monarch, that ever wore 
a crown or held a scepter. 

LXIV. 

There are a great many people in the world, who want 
just so much religion as will keep them out of hell. They 
belong to a class, who never realize the value of Chris- 
tianity, until they stand face to face with the king of ter- 
rors. They studiously watch the boundary of the domin- 
ion of him, who rules in the kingdoms of this world, walk 
as near it as is possible with safety (in their judgment), 
but carefully avoid, as they suppose, coming within his 
jurisdiction. They want every thing of the world^ that 
ministers to the pride, or panders to the lusts, of sensuous 
man. They w^ant the honors and emoluments, which the 
world bestows upon those who flatter and serve it, and of 
course prefer to live along the borders of that kingdom, 
whose native products are adapted to their tastes; having 
recently emigrated from it, without withdrawing their af- 
fections, or adopting the manners and customs of those, 

with whom they are nominally associated. Now, interpret 

2^ 



330 EXTRACTS FROM SERxMONS. 

the actions of such people, and they say as plainly as 
language can say it, '* I am very much afraid of hell, and 
as I know of no other way of avoiding it, but by accept- 
ing the religion of Jesus Christ, I propose to accept just 
so much of it, as will answer my pui-pose. If I knew of 
any other way of I'eacliing the same end, which involved 
still less self denial, I would prefer it; but as I do not, I 
must keep along the borders of Zion, until the storms of 
life blow hard, and then retreat to the interior, and claim 
the security of those, who have all their life long, dwelt 
in the very presence of its King, ever ready to do His 
bidding." 

Alas ! for those who reason in this way. They are jeop- 
ardizing their souls' salvation every hour of such a life. 
They are in the blackness of darkness, and on the way to 
eternal perdition. 

LXY. 

Grod gives peace to man through righteousness. Peace 
is always the consequence of lighteousness. Paul speaks 
of '' the peaceable fruit of righteousness,'' which is freely 
accorded to just and righteous men and nations. There 
can be no real peace in the world, except through right- 
eousness — the grand source from which all happiness 
springs. 

Lxvr. 

This earth will be consumed by fire, and there will be 
new heavens, and a new earth. Then there will be no sea. 
The very nature of water is such, that it may be decom- 
posed and burned; consequently, the broad Atlantic and 
the mighty Pacific Oceans, with all the minor seas and 
lakes and rivers, will become so many depots of combusti- 
ble matter. These, with the moisture of the atmosphere 
(forty-five miles high), and of the interior of the earth, 



EXTRACTS FROM SEKxMONS. 331 

together with its internal fires, will make short work of 
our little planet and its various tenantries. 

LXVII. 
It is remarkable that the subject of religion per se^ 
should be so carefully considered bv pulpit orators and 
others, all over Christendom, and the Scriptures ran- 
sacked from beginning to end, to find an answer to the 
question, " What is it ? " Now^, the Apostle James, whose 
style is remarkable, for its perspicuity and directness, says 
to his beloved brethren: that ''pure religion, and undefiled 
before God the Father, is this, to visit the fatherless and 
widows in their aflSiction, and keep himself unspotted 
from the world. '^ This definition, happy as it is, presents 
a fine example of metonomy — the putting of the eifect for 
the cause. 

LXVIII. 

The moral government of God is neither more nor less, 
than a government of motives. It is not, how^ever, a gov- 
ernment of motives, developed through the physical na- 
ture of man, whereby he is involuntarily forced to act. 
But it is, in the highest sense of the term, a free govern- 
ment. 

We sometimes speak of man as being a free moral 
agent. Why is he so ? It is because he is treated as 
such. Any one possessing the power and the privilege of 
acting in harmony with the dictates and conclusions of a 
sane understanding, is to be regarded as a free moral 
agent. 

LXIX. 

Christ taught his disciples a form of prayer. His dis- 
ciples said to him, '' Lord, teach us to pray, as John also 
taught his disciples ; and Christ said unto them ; When 



332 . EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

ye pra}^ say, Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed 
be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, as 
in heaven so in earth. '^ 

It was very natural that they, whom Christ commis- 
sioned as embassadors, to promulge the principles and 
advent of the approaching reign or kingdom, should ask 
for instructions as to what to proclaim, and how to pray. 
The representative of a president or king, when commis- 
sioned to execute business of state, receives general or 
special instructions, with reference to his mission. In the 
case now referred to, we hear the King of kings, direct- 
ing his subjects how to pray, and what to pray for. He 
teaches them to say, " Thy kingdom come ; " or, when 
properly translated, '' Thy reign come ; " and this phrase, 
as constituting an important part of the prayer dictated 
by Christ to his disciples, is worthy of special notice. 

In the first place, it is not to be understood that the 
kingdom was to move. The reign of God was to be in- 
augurated — established on earth. We speak of the ad- 
minislration of a new president, or the reign of a new 
king, as coming or approaching ; before the former is in- 
auo;urated or the latter crow^ned. Great chano;es in civil 
and earthly governments, are expected, and even prayed 
for. The same is true in regard to ecclesiastical govern- 
ments. But when the new administration begins, or the 
new king is crowned, we cease to speak of it as coming, 
or pray for it as wished for. 

At the time Christ taught his disciples to pray, he was 
himself preaching to the people, saying, Reform, for the 
kingdom of heaven approaches. He dictated what is 
called the Lord's Prayer, as a model for their use, to be 
repeated until the inauguration of the reign of Christ. 
That glorious reign began on the day of Pentecost ; and 



EXTKAOTS FKUM SERMONS. 333 

inasmuch as the kingdom of Heaven has commenced — 
the reign of heaven has come, what propriety, we ask, is 
there, in repeating and emphasizing, in our use of the 
Lord's Prayer the words, ''Thy kingdom come?" What 
does it avail to say, ''Thy reign come," when the dispensa- 
tion referred to, has akeady commenced? Nevertheless, 
the Lord's Prayer is repeated, six or seven times in one 
day's worship, in the Church of Rome and the Church of 
England; and we even hear it repeated frequently, in the 
worship of the Protestant Churches in the Old and New 
Worlds, just as if it was of special obligation upon 
churches and individuals, because of the authority which 
dictated it — although under a different dispensation. It 
is strange how authority, or even custom, will tyrannize 
over the understandings of men. Let it be remembered 
that there was no mediation, no Mediator when Christ 
gave this form of prayer, which doubtless the Apostles 
and seventy disciples used, all over Judea, until the king- 
dom prayed for — the reign of Christ — did come.* 

LXX. 

The Greek words for repent and reform are quite dif- 
ferent in form and distinct in signification.*)- Some persons 
repent from fear touching the consequences of their actions, 
without change of practice, or future intent or purpose. 

^ Doubtless Mr. Campbell is right in saying the "kingdom " here 
refers to the reign of Christ, which was then near at hand. Bat the 
prayer is now used in reference to the fullness of the kingdom, con- 
templated in the Millenium. Whether it can be lawfully so appro- 
priated is a question ; but this is certainly the meaning of those who 
use the style to which Mr. C. objects. M. 

•{• From metamelomai and metanoeo. 



334 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

We are not only required to repent, but are called upon 
by the Great Teacher to reform. There has been an al- 
most interminable war of words, about the true meaning 
of the word repent ; and this conflict of ideas or opinions, 
as waged by the press and pulpit, all over Christendom, 
has originated and continued, in the want of definiteness 
and distinctness in regard to the signification of the terms 
of which we are now speaking. A man may be very sorry 
for his past conduct — may repent and hang himself as Ju- 
das did, but there is no reformation, unless h(^ changes the 
whole course and purpose of his life. The words repent 
and reform, ought to be clearly defined, in their verbal and 
substantial sense. 

With the word repent (and the meaning of it) we gen- 
erally associate convert or baptize. The word turn, as 
used with us, is equivalent to the term '' convert." To a 
man going in a certain direction we may say, turn sir, you 
are going into danger — into the pit — turn to the right ! 
Here we have an illustration of the working of " convert " 
as tantamount to turn. Hence, all that family of words 
indicates the termination of one course and the beginning 
of another and a better one. 

This thing of being sorry, the fact of grief or compunc- 
tion of conscience, for thought or deed, never does any 
good, unless it lead us out of the state or practice of sin, 
into one of righteousness — or in other words changes our 
life for the better. The words repent and reform are as 
distinct, one from the other, as the sun and moon. For 
although the latter are both luminaries, there is a wonderful 
difference in their relations to and effects upon nature. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 335 

Lxxr. 
There is no theory in the teachings of Christ. The idea 
that there is, is a delusion which has broken the church 
into fragments. There are various theories and specula- 
tions of men, called orthodoxy or heterodoxy ; according 
to the stand-point from which they are estiuiated. Now we 
presume to say, that the Devil is as orthodox as any angel 
in Heaven, and there is not an oracle in the Bible, which 
his Satanic Majesty does not perfectly understand, so far 
as theory is concerned. But the Devil, nor theories, 
never saved any one. 

LXXII. 

We must stoop if w^e w^ould rise — submit if we would 
conquer. We must rule our stubborn wills to the standard 
of right, and subdue our rebellious passions into obedience, 
then say to them, '' hitherto and no farther.'^ Christ, through 
his submission, is crowded with glory in Heaven and is 
the Ruling Autocrat of the universe. 

LXXIII. 

There are a great many men in the w^orld, called Deists, 
pjofessing to be very devout, who refuse to recognize the 
Mediator. Now the very essence of Christianity consists 
in the recognition and acknowledgment, of our glorious 
High Priest — our precious Saviour and Mediator. There 
is no other Mediator — or medium — by or through w^iich, 
man's prayer can reach the throne of the Universe. 
Hence, speaking after the manner of men, we assert, that 
the Deist's prayer can not be heard or recognized in Heaven. 
Does not Christ say expressly, " I am the way, the truth 
and the life ; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me ? '^ 
No man is presumed to directly address God the Father by 
prayer ; or if he does, he show^s that he does not under- 



336 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

st«and or appreciate the teaching of the Mediatorial sys- 
tem of Christ. There is no access to the Father, except 
through the Son, hence, we say the prayers of the Deist 
can not be heard, and he who in his petitions refuses to 
recognize the rights of Christ is an imposter. 

The doctrine of the Deist would annul the law of the 
Pentateuch, for it denies the fact that the Jews were heard 
through the mediation or intercession of Moses, or through 
Aaron their High Priest, although when he appeared be- 
fore the mercy seat, he bore the names of the twelve tribes 
engraven upon his breast-plate. In like manner, in the 
Christian dispensation, the people of God are heard through 
Christ — the Annointed Son of God and our High Priest — 
the High Priest of the Christian dispensation, who has the 
names of his followers engraven upon his heart. He 
needs no tablet — he wears upon his heart, the names of 
those who were purchased by his blood. This in itself, is 
a grand inducement to prayer, and a guarantee that our 
prayers will be heard and answered, by our Father which 
art in Heaven. 

LXXIV. 

Why was Peter given more than one key, or w^hy is key 
in the plural number ? is a question often and properly 
propounded. To ask why there were two keys to the 
Kingdom of Heaven is a very natural inquiry. We gene- 
rally associate with a lock, the idea of a single key, or a 
key and its duplicate. Christ having complimented and 
congratulated Peter upon his candor, and upon his having 
received a revelation from his Father, not only announces, 
that ''upon this rock I will build my church," but says to 
Peter, " I will give unto thee, the keys of the Kingdom 
of Heaven." Here we have the plural form of the word 
" key " associated with " kingdom " in the singular. Now, 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. S37 

it is we believe admissible, upon the ground of reason nnJ 
probabilitj^, for us to nffirui, that this idea of a plurality or 
duality of keys, originated and became established in lite- 
rature, in and through the customs and manners of society 
— that this duality grew out of the conditions of humanity. 

Before, and at the time, the expression "keys of the 
kingdom " occurred, there were two distinct classifications 
of the human family — there were two principal and essen- 
tially different cksses of mankind. One was marked and 
identified in the flesh, and for certain sufficient reasons, 
were constituted an elect nation, and made the special de- 
positories of the oracles of God. Are we not told that He 
shew^eth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judg- 
ments unto Israel ? He hath not dealt so with any nation, 
and as for his judgments, they have not known them." 
Other nations have not known the God of Jacob, of Isaac, 
of Abraham, nor his statutes and judgments. 

The Jews in their pride, and high estimate of their own 
superior understanding, and character, used to consider, 
and treat the Gentiles as an inferior, and unimportant peo- 
ple. 

It was a matter of astonishment to the pupils of Christ, 
that he should speak of, or refer to, the Gentiles and Pa- 
gans, with their idols and worship, and even when they 
had been w^ith the Master two or three years, they were at 
a loss to know, why Christ should notice the nations out- 
side of the Jewish fold. They manifested a great deal of 
spiritual pride in that respect. They looked down upon 
the Gentiles with sovereign contempt. The Jews were not 
allowed to eat with them, disdained to associate with them, 
and seemed to believe that they could not touch a Gentile, 
without being polluted. Thus we may perceive and under- 
stand, how unnatural it appeared, and how^ difficult it must 
29 



333 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

have been, for Peter to reconcile himself to the idea of 
going out to preach to the Gentiles, when he was commis- 
sioned with the second key. For the Jews to receive the 
Gentiles into full fellowship, treating them as brethren, 
was one of the greatest revolutions ever witnessed or ex- 
perienced by any people of any age. Peter had to be 
specially educated and commissioned to bring about this 
result. We read of doors consisting of leaves, and it is 
sometimes beautifully pictured in history, that the gates 
of Heaven are composed of two leaves — one to open to the 
right, the other to the left — for the entrance of Jews and 
Gentiles respectively. Hence, it is an apposite figure of 
speech, to say that one of the keys, was to open the leaf 
for Jews, and the other to unlock the leaf for the Gentiles. 
Thus we have an application of Christ's promise to Peter, 
that he should receive "the keys of the Kingdom of 
Heaven." 

LXXV, 

" The sound of many waters " is the most aw^e-inspiring 
sound heard by mortal ears. The thunders of heaven 
startle for a moment, but the water's everlasting, unchang- 
able roar holds man in silent subjection to its resistless 
power — its sublime music. The tremendous cataracts of 
earth never tire, they seem almost to paralyze the power 
of speech, while they fill the soul of man w^ith the highest 
conceptions of the power and grandeur of their Author. 
Thus it is, that God has made the wonders of the universe 
the symbols of his power, or the revelators of his goodness. 

LXXVI. 

There is a volume of meaning and feeling in the proper 
use of the two words of the Lord's prayer, '' Our Father/^ 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 339 

It is not merely our God — our Creator, but our Father.* 
There is nothing in the sublime imagery, of human speech, 
in all the fine sayings or splendid conceptions of man, that 
can compare with the pathetic significance of these two 
words as taught to man by the Son of God. The Jews 
crucified Him for calling Himself the Son of God, but He 
freely shares the honor, with the fallen sons of men, and 
thus recognizes the brotherhood of man as joint heirs of 
the glory that shall be revealed. 

LXXVII. 

We find variety in all the spheres of life. Why is this? 
It is designed unquestionably to minister to the enjoyment, 
the happiness of man. There is no one thing that con- 
tains all things, yet there is one being w^ho in the dignity 
and grandeur of His entire nature, may be said to com- 
prehend the universe. That person is Christ, in whom are 
all the elements of humanity and divinity. He is the per- 
fect representation of the goodness and glory of God, and 
the grand central idea of humanity. 

LXXVIIT. 

Man, in appoximation, and Messiah, in His entirety, con- 
stitute a similitude of God. Christ may be said to be a 
perfect representation of God. ^'Ile is holy, harmless, 
undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the 
heavens; who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to 
oflfer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the 
peoples', for this he did once, when He ofi'ered up Himself.'^ 



^ This is a Xew Testament revelation. Under the former dispen- 
sations, God was known as the "Lord of hosts," the "God of bat- 
tles," etc., but under the Christian dispensation, He is known by the 
endearing appellation of "Father." M. 



840 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

Yes ! Christ was pure, just and holy as His Father in 
heaven, being so from His first breath to His last on earth. 
We have reason to rejoice, therefore, in being under such 
a Glorious Ruler, who combines, in His authority, the leg- 
islative, the executive and judicial, and all the crowning 
and sublime capacities of divinity, in the recovery and 
redemption of man. 

LXXIX. 

What a w^onderfully benevolent, mediatorial interpo- 
sition, is portrayed in the term Gospel. No Gospel was 
ever preached to fallen angels. There never was an invi- 
tation extended to one of that class who rebeled against 
God. They were cast out forever, into that darkness and 
misery — the abode of rebels and sinners — without and be- 
yond the heaven of eternal happiness. 

LXXX. 

No man has ever suggested an improvement to the par- 
ables of the Saviour. Like the fables of iEsop they were 
designed to impart knowledge to mankind, and they are 
the w^isest exhibitions of literature in the world. In the 
parables, we have a perfect portraiture of man. Every 
thing is marked out, as large as life — no more, no less ; and 
they stand in the precise attitude that their ideas are to 
be imprinted, upon the understanding and conscience of 
man. 

LXXXI. 

Think if you can — summon before your mental vision, 
the terrible revelation of our lives on the day of judgment! 
Yet, we see man playing the very pranks of childhood, 
upon the brink of endless perdition — loitering with abso- 
lute carelessness upon the verge of the fathomless abyss. 



EXTRACTS FROxM SERMONS. 341 

He regards not the outstretched arm of Jehovah, he turns 
a deaf ear to the sweet invitations of Him, who died to re- 
deem him — he turns away from the overtures of divine 
mercy, and regards the dictates of folly, and the suggestions 
of caprice, more than he does the revelations of the Infinite 
Mind. He follows the allurements of sin, panders to the 
pride of life and the lusts of the flesh — nay, willingly and 
willfully oflFers himself a sacrifice to sin, upon the altar 
of human passion. All these things and more will stain 
the fadeless record of those, who run from the kingdom, 
and refuse the invitations of the Father, through His Son 
Jesus Christ. 

LXXXIT. 

It has been said, that the sun never rises nor sets, with- 
out shining upon a Jew. Yet, this monumental people, 
still numbering millions, practice circumcision to a greater 
or less extent, throughout the world. The Jew, however, 
is perfectly passive under the operation of circumcision, 
which ceased to be a divine institution, after the circum- 
cision of Jesus of Nazareth. He was cut off — a beautiful 
application of the term, indicating that he was separated. 
The Jews themselves are guilty of the trial, condemnation, 
and crucifixion of the Saviour. It is true that Roman 
soldiers, w^ere employed to execute their malice, but this 
does not relieve the Jews from the infamy of the act, as 
the soldiers were mere instruments in their hands, for the 
the accomplishment of a purpose, deliberately planned 
and cruelly executed. 

The practice of circumcision as a divine ordinance, was 
obligatory upon the Jewish people, until Christ came into 
the world, since which time it has been practiced as a 
national rite or distinction. But it is no longer a duty. 
If a Jew was converted to Christianity during the Apos- 



342 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

tolic age, he was baptized whether he had been circumcised 
or not. We consider circumcision, a supernatural com- 
memoration, of the covenant in the flesh, pertaining to the 
posterity of Abraham, whereby the separation from God's 
people from the children of this world, was admirably 
typified. 

LXXXIII. 

The original word, of which righteousness is a transla- 
tion, is one of the most comprehensive in the Hebrew 
language, or indeed in universal language. It is not 
Justice nor Mercy. Righteousness and Justice are not 
the same, as is sometimes supposed. Justice strikes us 
as a very stern matter, while Mercy is subdued and tear- 
ful. It sees the guilt of sin as clearly as Justice does ; 
but it pities the sinner, which Justice does not. In the 
Bible sense, we consider this word as very important — 
wonderfully and peculiarly significant. It is a sort of 
commingling of the attributes through which we love to 
look at Grod — Truth, Goodness, Justice, and Mercy. 
Omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence can not be 
regarded as lovely in their nature. They are beautiful 
and potent words — grand and awful in significance, but 
there is no attraction in them. 

Man's heart yearns for, and must have words — signs 
of ideas — significant of something that calls forth his 
love and devotion ; the exercise of which is calculated to 
bring him to a truthful appreciation of the attributes and 
character of God, ^' Our Father in Heaven," as Jesus 
taught us to call him — and to love him with all our heart, 
and all our strength, and all our mind. Righteousness 
combines, in an eminent degree, the lovable attributes of 
Jehovah. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 343 

Lxxxrv. 
Adam was a representative man — his position was truly 
and awfully responsible. All humanity was, at one time, 
in one personality. Christ, as spiritually representative, 
stands precisely a second Adam. He represents those 
who are begotten in him, as Adam did those who were 
begotten of him — his descendants in the flesh. 

LXXXV. 

Among the most important ecclesiastical documents are 
the two oracles, which we sometimes denominate the ker- 
nel of Christianity— the Epistles of Paul to the Romans 
and to the Hebrews. They contain the most comprehen- 
sive and complete exposition of all that enters into Chris- 
tian faith and worship, ever spoken or written. 

LXXXVI. 

I beg you to remember, that Piety does not consist in 
words, nor in the forms and ceremonies of human wor- 
ship. AYhat is Piety ? We understand it to comprehend 
devotion of spirit, devout gratitude and unafl*ected adora- 
tion and admiration of soul toward God, ^'for that is good 
and acceptable before God.'' 

LXXXVII. 

We thank God, that we have Adam second, as we had 
Adam first. Adam first was so called because he was 
made of red earth. God breathed into his nostrils the 
the spirit — set the waves of life in motion, and gave him 
a home in Paradise. Bat in all his happiness, he fell 
from grace — lost his crown — the glory of God departed 
from him. Adam second, was begotten of the spirit, born 
in a stable, cradled in a manger, and died on the cross. 



344 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

The first Adam, lost Paradise, and cursed the world. The 
second Adam, redeemed and blessed the world. Great, 
however — and awfully so — as was the loss, it sinks into 
utter insignificance, when compared w^ith the sublimity of 
that eternal redemption, consummated in and through the 
second Adam, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. 

LXXXTIII. 

If w^e look at the Christian institution from the right 
stand-point, we shall find that it is no more nor less than 
a missionary institution. The Christian Church was es- 
tablished by missionaries. The word missionary means 
sent — sent on an errand, which w^e call a mission. We 
read in the Bible of God and Angels. Is the word angel 
a personal or official name ? It certainly is not a person- 
al appellation, and never was applied, as a proper and ap- 
propriate name, to any person, and can not be, in the na- 
ture of things. An angel then, is a missionary — a mes- 
senger ; and a missionary is an angel. The universe has 
been, is now, *and always will be, filled with angelic oper- 
ants and co-operants, w^ith the Spirit of God in dissem- 
inating the truths and blessings of religion.* 

LXXXIX. 

Christ taught, and exemplified in his practice, that it 
was more pleasing to give than to receive; but the miser 
says, by his action, that it is more pleasing to receive 
than to give. The man Avho gives is twice blessed — 
iyi the act and for tlie act. 

"^ The reader will observe that most of tlie extracts are of a didac- 
tic diameter. This was aliuost invariably Mr. C.'s method in the 
Bethany ])n]pit. His audience was largely nuide up of the students 
of the college; and consequently he carried into the pulpit much of 
the lecture style, M. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 345 

xc. 

It is a deplorable folly, that many professing Christians, 
are continually fighting about this dogma or theory, and 
that speculation in regard to Christianity. The strife of 
various denominations, over the orthodoxy of their written 
creeds, resembles in a great degree, the quarrels of chil- 
dren, over their toys and play-things. They would do well 
to remember, that the acknowledgment of a good rule, is 
quite a difi'erent thing from the practice of it. 

XCI. 

When we speak of our Father in Heaven, we should 
never forget, that it is through his Son Jesus, the Beloved, 
that ^\e properly approach him. The Son has all author- 
ity in the universe : for has not Grod made him King of 
kings and Lord of lords — the Way, the Truth, and the 
Life and our Judge at the last great day ? God the Father 
will not judge the w^orld — and we speak with great rev- 
erence w^hen we say so — although the Church of England 
and the Church of Scotland too, make God in person, the 
final judge of the world. It must be because they have not 
fully realized the glorious truth, that Christ is just as much 
the grand center of the spiritual universe, as the sun is the 
center of the solar system. When this great truth is fully 
understood, it must necessarily become evident, to every 
sane mind, that Christ, by whom or for whom, all things 
were created, wdll from the very nature and condition of 
things, judge the world and then resign his commission to 
the Father. Having done this, Christ will enter with his 
ransomed children, into the enjoyment of the glorious in- 
heritance, prepared for them by God in the Heaven of 
Heavens. 



346 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

XCII. 

In the second chapter of Paul's Epistle to the Hetrews^ 
there are many important questions propounded, and we 
desire to note this one particularly : " If every transgres- 
sion and disobedience received a just recompense of reward, 
how shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?" 
We desire to make a true and important distinction in re- 
ference to this passage. The question may be regarded 
as addressed to the men and women in the Churchy more 
particuhirly than to those who are out of the Church. All 
persons out of the Church, despise the salvation in their 
hearts. We wish to be explicit in the use of forcible terms. 
This word " neglect " is, and has been, greatly abused. A 
man never was, and never can be, false to a character he 
never possessed — in other words, a man never neglected a 
trade until he assumed the character of a tradesman or 
craftsman. No man really neglects a business, with which 
he has nothing to do. We, therefore, desire to impress 
upon the minds of all, that this remark of the Apostle, has 
particular reference to those who have entered into the 
Christian Church — into the Congregation of the Lord ; and 
in reference to passing over the threshold into the King- 
dom, it bankrupts human conception to attempt to give 
an adequate idea, of the glory, dignity and felicity, real- 
ized upon this triumph of faith and piety, over unbelief and 
alienation of heart. 

There are people — thousands of them in the world — w^ho 
pay no attention whatever to religion. Such persons can- 
not strictly be charged with neglecting, what they never 
undertook ; but their conduct amounts to no more nor less, 
than an expression of contempt for the calling of a Chris- 
tian. Yet every man possessed of sanity, who has read or 
heard the testimony of God as recorded in Holy Writ — 



EXTRACTS FRO.M SERMONS. 347 

has weighed it in the scales of reason — must be compelled 
to admit, that it comes not from the mind of man, but from 
the inspiration of God. Alas ! how many of the human 
family, in the estrangement of their hearts, are standing 
out in rebellion to God — j^es ! actually defying Omnipo- 
tence to arms. Plead with them — present to them the in- 
finite importance of submission to divine authority — re- 
mind them of the just recompense of reward for every 
transgression and disobedience — and the result is absolute- 
ly wonderful — incomprehensible ! They will treat it with 
far more disdain than they would an invitation to engage 
in folly, or even in crime, provided only you will not call 
it crime. They reply in effect, '^ God gave me passions 
and appetites, and I intend to indulge them — to follow the 
dictates of my own feelings. Do you suppose you can 
scare me by pictures of hell ? God gave me the power, and 
the capacity to derive and enjoy pleasure from a variety 
of sources ; and as long as I have the opportunity, I intend 
to do so. As for your religion, I scorn it. It inculcates 
principles, precisely antagonistical, to my natural inclina- 
tions, and I prefer to follow the latter, let them lead me 
where they will." Now, though men may not give audi- 
ble utterance to the words and phrases we have used, 
such is the interpretation of their acts — oftentimes more 
eloquent and truthful than words. The sinner in this age 
and particularly in this country, virtually refuses to have 
Christ to reio;n over him. Yes ! the transo:ressors and 
disobedient, fail to recognize Christ except as an imposter. 
As an imposter did you say ? Yes, I repeat it, as an im- 
2J0ster, To believe otherwise is to believe them devoid of 
reason. They have been told of the blessings of the King- 
dom — of the terrors of hell, as revealed by the Son of God, 
and taught by his Apostles. Now, no man to whom sal- 



348 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

vation has been offered upon the terms of the Gospel, and 
by the authority of Jesus Christ, can reject that salvation, 
if in the possession of reason, without practically saying 
that this religion is a cheat and its Author an imposter. 
Gentlemen ! Ladies ! It is a fearful thing to reject the Son 
of God — to refuse the salvation which he has obtained for 
you, through his own precious blood. 

XCIII. 

There may be an endless variety in the talents given to 
humanity ; nevertheless, every man is accountable to God, 
for the powers and capacities bestowed upon him. God 
is just and merciful. ''He renders to every man accord- 
ing to his work.'^ This divine law is just as applicable 
to nations as to individuals : and when we consider this 
subject in its true light, we can not fail to see and under- 
stand, that as a nation, our position is more responsible, 
than that of any other people under heaven. 

We justly glory in our national birthright. We have 
mor.e of the marks of true heroism than any other people 
created by God. We are honorably proud of our freedom 
of thought — we rejoice in our freedom of speech and free- 
dom of action — liberty restrained from licentiousness by the 
operation of law. We thank God for our birthright, our 
honorable ancestry, our constitutional liberty — secured to 
us as a people. Our forefathers jeopardized life, fortune 
and honor, that we their children, might enjoy the rewards 
of their sufferings, their sacrifices and their toils — their 
patriotic and priceless victory. Behold the land of free- 
dom — from the North to the South, from the East to the 
West, covered with institutions, religious, literary and 
scientific, and all in complete consentaneity, with the 
growth of our national strength and honor ! 



EXTllAOTS FRO:>I SERMONS. 349 

We envy no people on the globe. In arts and sciences, 
in the honors, gratifications and blessings of a mighty peo- 
ple, we stand high on the ladder of renown, while in na- 
tional wealth, political power, and moral glory, we are ele- 
vated to a high and complete scale of happiness and pros- 
perity. Hence, our responsibility to God. The sun does 
not shine upon a people, more prosperous or more respon- 
sible, than the people of the American States. Did it ever 
occur to any of you, or to all of you, that you had not 
properly weighed your responsibility to the state, to the 
church, or to Him in whom we live and move and have our 
being ? Would not such ingratitude, constitute the climax 
of iniquity? For a man or a nation to receive and enjoy 
from day to day, and from year to year, all the blessings 
which a bountiful and beneficent Providence bestows upon 
a people circumstanced as we are, without opening the lips 
or the heart, in thankfulness to the Author of them all, 
constitutes the basest ingratitude. In what respect can 
those, who thus act, claim superiority to the horse or the 
ox, which eats and drinks, and lives and dies, in the sun- 
beams of heaven, without ever looking up to the source of 
its enjoyments ? 

But with all our short-comings as a people, professing 
Christianity, we trust and believe (and we thank God for 
that belief), that we are a prayerful and grateful people. 

XCIV. 

How shriveled — how nearly annihilated, must be the 
soul of that man, who entertains the idea of making God 
his debtor. Could man offer the globe as a sin offering, 
God could not possibly be under any obligation for it. It 
is our highest honor — our greatest happiness to serve God. 
By giving to God, we enrich not God, but ourselves, and 



350 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

our happiness will always be in the precise ratio of our 
manlike and Godlike labors. Christ in His life and death 
beautifully illustrated the truth, that it is more blessed to 
give than to receive. 

xcv. 

We desire in the course of a few remarks, to invite the 
attention and admiration of our hearers to one of the 
most interesting of the prophetic psalms, of the sweet bard 
of Israel. The relations of Christ to His kingdom, and 
to the world, are probably better indicated here than any 
where else. We refer to the one hundred and tenth psalm. 

In the first place, who and what is David? In the He- 
brew his name simply signifies, 'Hhe beloved" — no more, 
no less than the name Christ. But, listen to the reading 
of the psalm : " The Lord said unto my Lord sit at my 
right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool."' 
This rendering is not correct, literally translated, it be- 
comes, "Jehovah said unto my Lord,'' etc. This is 
spoken in reference to the time of the incarnation. There 
was a prior condition, but now you are to bear in mind, 
that the Son of man, and the Son of God are in one and 
the same person; being in character and capacity perfect 
man, and perfect God. All His characteristics stand out 
in the boldest relief. 

But to return — can there be a more humiliating position, 
than that ascribed to the enemies of Jesus? They shall 
be placed beneath His feet — become His footstool — as 
understood by the Jews and Greeks. 

" The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of 
Zion. Rule thou in the midst of thine enemies." Here 
we must remark, with respect to the word " strength," as 
used in this passage, that it is a very lame translation. 
It is true that the original word signifies strength ; but 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 351 

that term, with us, in most relations, is associated with en- 
ergy. We incline, therefore, to the belief that a better 
translation would be, The Lord shall send the rod of thy 
power, out of Zion. The rod of his power — of his em- 
pire, was to be sent out ; and this term, rod, is precisely 
tantamount to what we denominate scepter. The passage, 
then, would stand more modernized — more improved, if it 
read. The Lord shall send the scepter of thy power out 
of Zion : rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. In 
other words, Thy rule shall commence in Zion, and there, 
too, in the very midst of thy enemies. 

How is this kingdom, this rule here indicated to be ac- 
complished — to be established ? Omnipotent Jehovah is 
to send out the scepter of his power, and by His infinite 
wisdom and authority, the reign is to be inaugurated and 
perpetuated. What a tremendous scepter — the symbol of 
Omnipotence — held aloft by the power of Jehovah, who 
'foretells the wondrous event, and commands, " Begin thou, 
in the very center of rebellion to rule — to erect the su- 
preme power — to exercise the paramount authority — at 
the place where thou w^ast persecuted by the high priest 
and the elders. Yes ! begin on the very spot where thou 
wert tried, condemned, and crucified between felons — 
where the mob reviled thee in the agonies of death, and 
where thou didst burst the confines of the grave, arise 
from the dead, and gloriously, under the escortage of the 
angelic host, ascend into heaven. 

It is said that a prophet is not without honor save in his 
own country. It is equally true that a man must regain 
his character and sustain his reputation, in the place where 
it has been lost or assailed. No man would ever think of 
migrating to a distant and strange land, to regain that 
which was lost at home. On this account, Christ was to 



352 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

begin to rule in the stronghold of his enemies — he was 
triumphantly to reinstate his authority and his good name, 
where it had been inhumanly wrested from him. And how 
could the glorious object of his mission into this world be 
consummated more successfully. It may, to some per- 
sons, seem strange ; but, in the wisdom of God — in the 
fulfillment of prophecy, and for the good of man, it was 
proper that Christ should be glorified in the precise 
locality where he had been rejected, betrayed, persecuted, 
reviled, and ignominiously crucified. The sweet and 
sainted bard looks down through the vista of a thousand 
years, and enthrones, in prophetic verse, the Man of Sor- 
rows, while his enemies become as dust beneath his feet. 

Our attention is arrested by the words " thy people.^' 
Christ was to be the head of a great people — the glorious 
Leader of an everlasting people. He did not die without 
a purpose. He suifered death for an object the most 
glorious ever oracled in prophecy, or achieved by human 
or divine agency since time began. Christ died to live 
— He stooped to conquer. He submitted, that he might 
lead death in the retinue of those enemies over whom he 
triumphed when he brought life and immortality to life. 

Christ rose a conqueror — but, having gained the grand- 
est victory on record, how did he treat his enemies? Did 
he torture them or kill them ? Did he destroy or save 
his enemies ? They were conscience-stricken, self-accused, 
self-condemned ! What else could they have expected 
but annihilation, for the crime of putting to a cruel and 
infamous death, the Son of God — the Redeemer of the 
world? He was now King of kings and Lord of lords ; 
constituted the Supreme Ruler of the universe. His 
stricken followers now became the heroes of a new era, 
confronted the wicked Jews in their synagogues and as- 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 353 

semblies of the people, and boldly charged them with the 
murder of the Prince of Peace, declaring tha.t the same 
Jesus, whom they had crucified, had become both Lord 
and Christ. No other prince, after triumphing over his 
enemies and ascending to the very zenith of power and 
authority, ever failed to signalize his triumph by the des- 
truction of his foes. Jesus achieved the same end, but 
by different means ; for, by an act of unbounded grace 
and mercy, when seated on the throne of the universe, he 
promised pardon and salvation to those who had imbued 
their hands in his blood — three thousand of whom, on 
the day of Pentecost, became his friends, and thus it was 
that Jesus destroyed his enemies. 

What else do we find here worthy of notice? The 
psalmist tells us in the third stanza — ■" Thy people shall be 
willing in the day of thy power." Yes ! the followers of 
Christ were not to consist of conscripts — men impressed 
into service, but the loyal people of His reign were to be- 
come volunteers, in the day of His power. The reign, 
proper of Christ did not commence while He was on the 
earth, for all the time previous to His crucifixion He was 
subject — obedient to the Roman Government. When trib- 
ute was demanded He paid it. If He was without, He 
got it, as when He sent to the sea and procured it from 
the mouth of a fish. He was subject to the laws that 
were. What a splendid exhibition of loyality ! Omnip- 
otent power, submitting to human authority — a father led 
by his child ! The deportment of Christ under the cir- 
cumstances, presents a beautiful model for man's imita- 
tion — giving respectful submission to the authorities of the 
land, and practically condemning rebellion. 

David speaks still further of the reign of Christ, refer- 
ring in this connection, to " the beauties of holiness from 
30 



354 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

the womb of the morning." These words we can not fully 
appreciate. We have exalted notions of what we call 
outward and sensuous beauty, but there is a beauty of ho- 
liness, which eclipses the sensuous as the bright rays of 
the noon day sun eclipse the glimmering light of the 
twinklino; star. The lanoruao-e here referred to is not 
merely complimentary, but by infinite wisdom it is ordained 
to aid the rightful claim of Messiah to the adoration and 
admiration of His people. 

Again, we have the language, " The Lord hath sworn 
and will not repent. Thou art a priest forever after the 
order of Melchisedek." Now it is not necessary for Je- 
hovah to swear. He could not literally utter any thing 
in the nature of a profane oath; but to make the language 
intelligible to man, and to secure the desired object, the 
psalmist adapts his language to the genius of human na- 
ture as it now is, and, therefore, he addresses man in har- 
mony with his nature and understanding. The oracle is 
equivalent to this, " The Lord hath covenanted and will 
not change it." 

Christ is a priest forever after the order of Melchisedek. 
Melchisedek had no predecessor — was without father or 
mother, brother or sister, and Christ too was of an en- 
tirely independent order. He was ordained a High Priest 
forever, to intercede at the throne of grace, in behalf of 
man's salvation and eternal happiness. 

xcvi. 

In the last chapter of the Apocalypse, we receive from 
the Apostle John, a very important revelation. It was 
given to those disciples through whom " the gospel of 
peace, and the glad tidings of good things, were preached 
to every creature which is under heaven," for is it not 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 355 

-written, that ''their sound Avent into all the earth, and 
their words unto the end of the world?" We are always 
interested in the last words of a man about to depart this* 
life» and we contemplate the last admonitions of the Book 
of Books, with feelings peculiar to the associations of a 
dying man. 

In one of the last verses, of the last book of the Bible, 
we are presented with a significant and comprehensive or- 
acle. Christ says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega" — 
the Greeks knowing very well what this meant, for they 
were the first and last letters of their alphabet ; but to 
make it plain to those w^io did not read Greek, He adds, 
''the beginning and the end," and for those who might not 
understand the full significance of even this. He continues 
as if to render it universally intelligible — culminating in 
the bold Saxon words — "the first and the last." Thus we 
have the glorious oracle, expressed in three forms, adapted 
to difi*erent varieties of the human race, and conditions of 
the minds of men; and in these three forms or phrases, or 
figures of speech, we have the precise same meaning ; each 
conforming in significance to both the others — tantamount 
and identical in meaning. 

In the succeeding verse, we read, " Blessed are they 
that do his commandments, that they may have right to the 
tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the 
city." Your attention is directed for a moment to the 
word " blessed." We have another word tantamount to 
this and more generally understood. It is the w^ord 
"Aajrp2/." From the original we learn that it indicates 
the highest degree of happiness ; hence, Ave may, with pro- 
priety, render it, " happy are they, that do His command- 
ments, that they may have right to the tree of life." 

Mark the point of '• n^A^." Let us have a practical 



356 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

view of the matter. The keeping of His commandments 
did not give the "right," nor the professing of them; 
neither does the acknowledgment of them, but it requires 
that we shall actually do them, if we would have a right to 
the tree of life. A man may acknowledge the obligation 
of a law or command — profess to believe in its rectitude, 
acknowledge its authority — but these do not include the 
doing of it, and in that is the special obligation— the all- 
important idea. 

Christ the '' Son of David," in a spiritual sense, revived 
perpetuated and glorified, the royal race of His father. 
David assures us that there is a reward for those '' who 
remember His commandments to do them." But the true, 
unalloyed happiness of the soul of man, consists not in 
the very act of doing the commandments of God. The 
rich reward is consequent upon the keeping of the pre- 
cepts of the Great Teacher and Governor. There is a 
great difference in the effect of a principle and that which 
is inherent in the principle itself. In keeping the com- 
mandments and precepts of Christ, there is a present re- 
ward, but that reward is but the shadow of that which is 
to come to those, who dare and do — who live out the com- 
mandments and fight the good fight of faith. 

xcvir. 
I believe there is not a man living, who has a perfectly 
undisturbed conscience. If I should undertake to sketch 
a happy man — or the conditions of true happiness, I would 
put down, as of prime necessity, a careful reading, an 
earnest, prayerful study of the sacred oracles, and an un- 
faltering walk in the light of their inspired teachings. If 
any thing can make a man happy in this life, it is a con- 
tinued, thoughtful, and active communion with God. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERxMONS. 357 

But happiness in its nature and degree, has respect to 
the powers and capacities, natural and acquired, of the 
individual man. Some persons enjoy more happiness than 
others, under similar circumstances ; and although there 
are a great many degrees of happiness, if the soul of man, 
whether large or small, be full of the love and glory of 
God, the measure of his happiness is complete ; for the 
soul of man, through communion with God, can only be full 
of happiness. 

A wag once' asked a devout Christian this question: 
" Whom do you worship ? " ^^ I worship God, " said the 
Christian. The wag added, " Is he a great or a little 
God ? '' The answer was, " I worship a great God and a 
little God." ''How can that be?" said the quiz. "Why, 
sir," said the man of God, " He is so large that he 
fills the universe with his presence, and so small that 
he dwells in my heart." These answers were happily 
conceived. The soul of man can be no more than full, 
no matter what its capacity may be. Hence, if the belief 
of a man's mind is right, whether his capacity be large or 
small, if it be full, his happiness is complete. This is per- 
haps the best w^ay to settle the question of man's happi- 
ness. God says, " I will dwell in the hearts of my peo- 
ple " — and if the love of God fills the heart of man, he 
must be happy. The novitiate in the school of Christ, un- 
der the Spirit's teaching, can be as happy as King Solo- 
mon in the zenith of his grandeur and renown. What a 
bea.utiful thought it is, that the poorest beggar that walks 
the earth can be as happy as the proudest monarch, shin- 
ing in all the splendors of a throne. The felicity of a 
Gabriel or Raphael, or of any other bright angel of heaven, 
can not exceed the happiness of a pauper of earth, pro- 



358 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

videcl only, the latter enjoys perfect union and communion 
with the great I Am, 

XCVIII. 

" If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be 
Anathema Maranatha." 

We read this remarkable passage in the concluding por- 
tion of Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, and it is worthy 
of special consideration and remark. These words were 
not spoken or written to a promiscuous auditory — not to 
a public assembly of Jews and Gentiles — nor to a Gentile 
communit}^, as such, nor yet to a synagogue of Jewish 
worshipers, but to a very splendid Christian Church in 
the renowned city of Corinth — a city designated by Cicero 
as the full eye of all Greece, a city frovi which the Apostle 
had written a number of letters to other churches. With 
all its greatness and boasted piety, it had become deeply 
imbued with lukewarmness and general licentiousness. A 
great congregation, having been built up in Corinth by the 
preaching of the Gospel, Paul has written more to it than 
to any other mentioned in the New Testament. Hence, 
the propriety of analyzing the different items, contained 
in documents so important. But our cursory observations 
at this time, will be confined to the passage already re- 
ferred to. 

After many and forcible reasonings and exhortations, 
with Gentiles and others in the Church, Paul concludes 
w^ith this terrible sentence, " If any man love not the Lord 
Jesus Christ " — he gives his name in full — '' let him be 
Anathema Maranatha," — a fearful curse, the true signifi- 
cance of which is — Let him that loves not the Lord Jesus 
be cursed now^, and until the Lord comes. It is a wither- 
ing denunciation without a precedent in any of the Apos- 
tolic writings. It is not the language of excitement, nor 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 359 

does he speak under the influence of a feeling of resent- 
ment, nevertheless, to those who fulfill the conditions there 
is woe unutterable in this fearful curse. We may remark 
very properly, that this verse suggests far more than it 
expresses. The suggestive indeed was the characteristic 
style of the Apostle, and the same remark is true in regard 
to his cotemporary and fellow-worker.. But we presume 
that no one possessed more of this power, than the great 
Apostle to the Gentiles. In his letters and speeches, there 
are single words of more scope and significance, than are 
found in whole sentences of other writers and speakers. 
His manner of speaking is eminently calculated to enlighten 
the mind of man, and to advance him more and more in 
the full realization of the great elements of Christianity. 
A single question in the teachings of the inspired writers, 
is sometimes worth more, than a volume of uninspired dis- 
sertations ; while their assertions and proofs, in regard to 
certain principles and positions in the divine economy, are 
of wonderful significance and irresistible force. 

The pointedness of this curse seems to pierce the very 
heart of man, and we are irresistibly prompted to ask, 
" Why should it have been pronounced ?" It is all the m.ore 
remarkable in view of the fact that Paul had elscAvhere 
commended the Corinthians, and had given them much 
attention. The secret of the whole matter is, that while 
Paul appreciated and commended their virtues, he had dis- 
covered a spirit in the church at Corinth the manifesta- 
tions of which he did not approve, and against the ten- 
dency of which it was necessary to warn them in these 
words of fearful import. With the abundance of their 
spiritual gifts, there was much of selfishness and worldly 
ambition, through the influence of which the church was 
likely to fall short — to fail of its great mission. And here 



860 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

let US pause to remark upon the unreasonableness of that 
pride in the possession and selfishness in the use of that 
^vhich man could not originate, and which he possesses 
solely as the beneficiary of the bounty of heaven. Imag- 
ination often puffs men up with extravagant ideas of their 
own superiority, and thus a spirit haughty and imperious 
is made to supersede the humility, which is an essential at- 
tribute of Christian character. The existence of such a 
spirit is wholly incompatible with the love of our fellow- 
men or of God himself. Such inordinate selfishness can 
not easily be defined in words, but its manifestations in 
the lives and characters of men, render a people or a 
church offensive in the sight of God. He knoweth a 
proud man afar off. There is one kind of pride (so-called) 
which we delight to see, and to commend. For example, 
we delight to witness on the part of man a respect for, and 
an appreciation of, his own good name and repute. It is 
a little dangerous, however, to indulge such a feeling, as it 
is so difficult to distinguish it, in its manifestations, from 
pride of person or of circumstances ; and the pride of life 
and circumstances do not come into communion and fel- 
lowship with the feelings and sentiments of the children 
of God. Persons given up to the pride of life — to say 
nothing of churches thus affected — will find it very diffi- 
cult to enter the kingdom of heaven. '' God resisteth the 
proud, but giveth grace to the humble.'^ Has not Christ 
said that unless you become as little children you can not 
enter the kingdom of God? " Humble yourselves in the 
sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." 

The language of Paul seems to be, and doubtless really 
is, a reproof of a deficiency in love to God ; and surely 
ingratitude to God transcends all other manifestations of 
the sin of ingratitude possible to conceive of. It must be 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 361 

possible, it must be practicable^ for man to love God, or he 
^vould not condemn him for failing to do so. Man has a 
mind to appreciate the goodness of God. He has the 
Bible — the throne of grace — ever accessible, and a glori- 
ous Mediator ! And what more than these can he ask or 
need ? If he will permit the evidence of God's love to 
penetrate and permeate his heart, he will reciprocate that 
love, and if he have that love, he will manifest it to his 
brother man, as well as to the Lord Jesus, for, like the sun, 
it is a glorious center of radiation — an ever-active princi- 
ple, diffusing light and heat throughout the sphere of its 
influence. 

It ought never to be forgotten, that hatred never ceases 
to act in the absence of love. They are the two ever 
active principles of the universe. Love works perpetu- 
ally in its own good mission, and hatred never tires in its 
evil mission. They are precisely antagonistic. There 
are many degrees of both. Suffice it to say, that there is 
a perfect hatred and a perfect love. In Satan, the adver- 
sary of God and man, the influence of hatred will finally 
culminate and terminate. Love is conservative in its in- 
fluence. It will secure to man the rights of heaven, the 
throne of grace and eternal life. 

We can not dismiss this subject, as involved in the pas- 
sage read, without referring to the practical use, which 
the Apostle evidently designed we should make of the 
threat or exhortation in regard to the love of the Lord 
Jesus. We know that it is possible to grow in love to 
God, and to prosper in his worship every day of life. 
We understand that God will punish our neglect to culti- 
vate and covet this love. The very curse invoked by the 
Apostle convinces us that we may have it if we w^ll. If 

we are devoid of its influence, it is our sin — the result of 
31 



362 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

a neglect to avail ourselves of the Divine benevolence in its 
rich provision for the education and endowment of the 
souls of men. Have we not the throne of grace — testi- 
mony equal to the establishment of a glorious faith — and 
repentance as a consequence ? Have we not the resur- 
rection, ascension, and glorification of the Lord Jesus, 
and the glorious hope inspired thereby? None of these 
things originated with man — lout they are the gift of God 
— blessings vouchsafed to man as the means of working 
out for the ransomed of Christ a beatification as broad as 
creation, and as enduring as eternity itself. 

• xcix. 
In order properly to understand the grand themes of 
the Old and New Testament writings we must examine 
the Bible carefully. No man can understand an atom of 
the universe without a general view of the mass. We 
must always look at the parts in the whole, and examine 
the whole in the parts. And the parts of the whole of this 
volume are embraced in the two great ideas of God and 
man. The two cardinal elements of the whole Book of* 
Books are Divinity and humanity. Hence, in the details 
of its historical facts, these subjects are thoroughly and 
beautifully expanded, and so described and developed as 
to afford us a complete treatise, on these two sublime 
topics, as the leading object of our desire and meditation. 
They are subjects that will always grow in. interest and 
importance, as we grow in knowledge, and intellectual and 
spiritual power; and, we presume to say, that their ex- 
pansion will be as eternal as mind itself. Angels desire 
to look into these things, and why ? Because they con- 
stitute the only legible revelation of God. No other lan- 
guage than that of the Bible, could ever have given to 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 363 

man a true conception of the Creator of man and of the 
universe. It is through the works of God that we learn 
his name and character. And though we begin with the 
minutest animalculae of creation, and continue to ascend 
through all the grades of vegetable and animal life — even 
through the spiritual, up to Cherubim and Seraphim, we 
find no end. Thus, as we advance in wisdom and happi- 
ness, in the order of the wondrous and sublime revela- 
tions of God, to the growing comprehension and capa- 
city of man, our growth, after all, will only prove that the 
finite can never reach the infinite^ — the creature never 

rival the Creator. 

c. 

After having read the whole of the thirteenth chapter 
of Paul's letter to the Romans,* we desire to say a few 
" words, suggested by the latter half of the chapter. The 
antecedent portion of this epistle, presents to us the most 
sublime conception, that had ever been entertained in re- 
gard to the grandeur and authority of the Founder of the 
Christian's faith and hope. All over Christendom, it is 
conceded that the epistle to the Romans, if not the most 
important, is one of the most important documents, in the 
whole volume of inspiration. It undoubtedly takes in the 
largest area, in its reasonings, precepts, and exhortations. 
This epistle, and that to the Hebrews, are, emphatically, 
the two great productions of that great master in Israel, 
known as the Apostle to the Gentiles. They relate, inter 
alia^ to the Sonship of Christ — to the Mediatorship of 
our Saviour, and they dwell particularly upon the Priest- 
*hood of the Messiah, which is the glorious center of our 
religious system, and the great central idea of all true 
forms of religion. Indeed, it embraces the world ; for the 
arm of Divine Providence has been thrown around the en- 



364 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

tire family of man, by that great philanthropist, who took 
humanity upon His divinity, and came down to earth, 
from the glory of Heaven, to elevate man from the moral 
darkness and ruin into which he had fallen under the 
machinations of the great adversary. 

We must have a general view of the contents of this 
whole volume, before we can profitably enter into the study 
and investigation of any part of it. This remark is true in 
regard to this epistle of Paul to the Romans, than which 
no more important document ever emanated from his pro- 
lific pen. 

We refer briefly to the contents of this section, begin- 
ning with the seventh verse : ''Render, therefore, to all 
their dues — tribute to whom tribute is due, custom to 
whom custom, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.'^ 
W^e direct attention particularly to the exhortation de- 
duced from this passage. The first sentence is indicative 
and comprehensive, equal in its scope to the remainder of 
the paragraph, and. the whole verse is a kind of summary 
of those matters contemplated by Paul, in these compre- 
hensive groupings. They are all w^ell worth remembrance. 
In this address there are two grand ideas presented to 
those in power. The leading period, " render, therefore, 
to all their dues," engrosses the sentiment of the exhorta- 
tion. Observe that this has respect to the antecedent por- 
tion of the chapter, as well as to the government of the 
earth. 

And what is this government but a dispensation under 
the moral sovereignty of God, a dispensation for the well- 
ordering, the well-being of society ? This dispensation, in 
its details, provides for the proper exercise and develop- 
ment of the physical, social, intellectual and spiritual ca- 
pacity. There is no possibility of a man's being happy, 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 365 

unless he can exercise and enjoy his ^vhole nature. In 
order, therefore, that all these capacities of human nature 
may be developed and enjoyed, we have the fountains of 
pleasure and gratification opened up to us, by infinite wis- 
dom and benevolence, in manner and degree, exactly 
adapted to the demands of our nature. The whole study 
of nature, human and divine, reveals the sublime fact that 
every thing is relative, to God and man ; and the great 
oracles of the Bible prove that creature and Creator are 
the two central ideas of all the dispensations of God ; 
whether the dispensation be on earth or among angels, 
principalities and powers, in heaven — it is always the 
same. There is no tameness, no insipidity, in any of the 
institutions of God in the universe, and the order thereof 
aifords to man the most complete and consummate hap- 
piness. 

Many of the best summaries of Christianity are found 
in Paul's epistle to the Romans. The several verses under 
consideration are conceded generally to be excellent and 
elevated revelations of God, in respect to our duties, under 
his absolute sovereignty. The sovereignty of God is a 
most sublime idea, and one that bankrupts our powders of 
language, when we presume to give expression even to our 
own inadequate conceptions of it. It is an absolute and 
unlimited sovereignty — the fountain of life as well as of 
power. All the controversies of modern or ancient Chris- 
tendom, on this subject, remind us forcibly of the conten- 
tions of children — useless and fruitless, for the simple rea- 
son that those who have engaged in these theoretical and 
speculative disquisitions upon the Sovereignty Divine of 
the universe, have never started at the right place. We 
must assume a position that will command and com- 



366 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

prehend the whole universe, in order to understand this 
absolute and eternal sovereignty of God. 

But let us look into this portion of Scripture that has 
respect to our dues. We can not have a civil goyernnient 
without paying for it, hence we must labor and conduct 
ourselves in such a manner as is best calculated to establish 
and support it. There is but one government that requires 
no aid, no tribute, for its support. That is the govern- 
ment of God. In all other governments of the universe 
man is the actor — both the ruler and the ruled, and the 
great ends and aims of man's government are and should 
be to develop and to aggrandize himself, and at the same 
time to honor and glorify his Maker. 

Man should be careful never to dishonor himself, and as 
we honor others, we should honor ourselves in all our 
thoughts and deeds. This is a high conception in a moral 
code, and ought to be taught to every man. God has 
planted deep in our natures the great fact that if we would 
be honored in the estimation of others, we must respect 
and honor ourselves. 

One mode of doing this is to render " to all their dues." 
We owe them — we owe our parents — we owe our children, 
we owe our brothers and sisters, and we are every day to 
render our dues (our duties) of affection, respect and 
honor. These are not pecuniary debts. But what are the 
pecuniary debts of this world but representations of the 
realities, due from man to man, and from man to God. 
Hence these ideas of the Apostle, inculcated in this valu- 
able and practical letter to the Romans, are of real inter- 
est and concern to all. 

We are exhorted to pay tribute, as the minister of God 
calls upon us. These expressions, so characteristic of 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 367 

olden times, are well calculated to give us a correct idea 
of the principles which the Apostle wishes to illustrate. 

We are also to render custom to whom custom is due. 
Custom is still required upon the foreign commerce of 
most of the nations of the earth. But when we are re- 
quired to render fear to whom fear is due, we are not to 
understand this command as approving a servile and 
crouching spirit. It has respect only to the reverence due 
our superiors, both on earth and above the earth. We are 
bound to render reverence and respect to every man, ac- 
cording to his education, standing and influence in soci- 
ety. Honor and regard from man to man, grow naturally 
out of our legal and civil relations. Every man is protected 
by his government, or at least ought to be, in the enjoy- 
ment of all the rights of citizenship, and for this reason 
he is bound to sustain and support the government, and to 
respect those who represent its sovereign powers in the 
various departments of government. The absolute sove- 
reignty of Grod, however, requires no support from man, 
but his duty is to do all in his power to honor and glorify 
himself and his Creator. 

We are commanded to owe no man any thing, but to 
love him — to love our neighbor as we love ourselves — but 
we are never asked to love anybody more than we love 
ourselves; hence, our own personal love is the standard 
of love to all others. The love of ourselves, properly un- 
derstood, is the fulfillment of every command, both God- 
ward and manward; and honor and love in these direc- 
tions, are the great central ideas of all happiness. It is 
in accordance with that omnipotent and omnipresent econ- 
omy which has to do with our present and future destiny. 
We have good reasons for honoring God, for all we have is 
the gift of his boundless benevolence. We are happy in 



368 EXTRACTS FROxM SERMONS. 

doing it, and no man can be unhappy in lionoring God. 
We can never show hio:her esteem or crreater honor to our- 
selves than to devote our highest and noblest powers to 
the honor of Him to whom all honor is due. Honor, hom- 
age, respect and love are the legitimate debt of every ra- 
tional and responsible- being that lives, and God claims 
these of every creature whom he has endowed with reason. 
If there be any portion of the animate universe that owes . 
more to God than any or than all the rest, it is man. We 
presume to say that he is the greatest debtor in the universe. 

How infinitely more indebted is man to his Maker — 
fallen, alien and rebel as he is — than was Adam before he 
tasted the forbidden fruit. He waa debtor, before the fall, 
for all the joys of Paradise. These he forfeited by an 
act of disobedience, fell, and transmitted his fallen nature 
to his posterity; yet, by the boundless grace of our Father 
in heaven, we are permitted to return to his family, and 
enjoy the glories and beatitudes of an eternal life in 
heaven. Then is it more than right, that we should con- 
secrate all our thoughts and feelings in adoration and ad- 
miration of God, our Creator and Benefactor ? 

It is in obedience to the law of nature that all men 
shall honor God. Man is so constituted that he can not 
be happy without honoring God. Hence, heaven's law of 
honor and love is binding upon every being that can form 
an idea of moral obligation. God commands me to love 
my neighbor as much and no more than I love myself; 
and he commands my neighbor to love me as much and no 
more than I love myself, and that will be just as much as 
he loves himself. If we respect and honor A., B. and C, 
then will A., B. and C. respect and honor us ; so, the 
more we honor the more are we honored. This is the beau- 
tiful economy of heaven. The more we give the more we 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 369 

have to give, and the more we seek to please God and glo- 
rify him, the more Ave please and gratify ourselves. God 
v>'ill glorify and honor that man who glorifies and honors 
God ; but I know of no greater impossibility than for God 
to honor and glorify that man who denies his Saviour and 
Maker their just dues in thanksgiving and praise. On 
the part of God it w^ould be to brook the grossest insult, 
to countenance the blackest ingratitude. 

By making ourselves lovely and agreeable we render 
those around us happy, and if we' thus live we can but be 
happy. Though persecutions and proscriptions may 
trouble us now and then, they will be short-lived, and 
form the exception, while the general law holds good. 
" Love worketh no ill to his neighbor, therefore love is the 
fulfilling of the law\'^ How perfect in conception and 
prolific in universal happiness, is this divine law ! Do yon 
not see instantly that its exercise vouchsafes to man the 
highest degree of happiness of which his nature is capa- 
ble, under the conditions of life ? Love thy neighbor as 
thyself is an oracle that breathes the spirit of social love. 
I love my neighbor as I love myself, and my neighbor 
loves his neighbor as he loves himself. Thus the flow of 
affection, continuing through the millions of human hearts, 
forms one unbroken chain of love, which vibrates and 
thrills the soul of every member of the great family of 
man, throughout the length and breadth of God's universe. 

CI. 

We propose a short discourse suggested by the thir- 
teenth chapter of Paul's eminently synthetic epistle — the 
first to the Church at Corinth. 

There are different aspects in which we may look at the 
Corinthian Church. They were an eloquent people. They 



370 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

were also carnal, profligate, and completely absorbed by 
an inordinate ambition for oratorical display. They were 
withal addicted to all manners of animalism. Hence, no 
church organization in the whole broad diocese of the 
great Apostle, required a spiritual censor and adviser more 
than the Church of Corinth, and no other received as much 
attention in the way of epistolary instruction, exhortation 
and reproof — he having w^ritten to it tw^o long letters, re- 
plete w^ith valuable information and advice. ^J^he spiritual 
condition of the church made it very appropriate for the 
Apostle to present, in their proper attitude, all the tempta- 
tions in the social system to which man could be subjected. 
Paul, always equal to the occasion, recognizes and meets the 
necessities of their condition, in every conceivable case ; so 
that the man who studies the two epistles to the Corinthi- 
ans, their spirit and letter, in the light of surrounding cir- 
cumstances, refines himself in all those particulars to 
which he refers — especially in the twelfth and thirteenth 
chapters — and provides himself with a Christian armor, 
sufficient, with vigilance, to shield himself from all the 
fiery darts of the adversary. It requires great concentra- 
tion of mind and discipline of thought, properly to appre- 
ciate the great fundamental truths which characterize this 
letter. 

We consider this a most important epistle, when we 
take into consideration the circumstances which required 
and the motives which prompted it. As already re- 
marked, vanity and ostentation, in reference to their ora- 
torical powers, were distinctive characteristics of the 
Corinthians, who were an eloquent people ; and the church 
there, above all others, required just such a letter as 
this. Relations, conditions, manners, and customs, ex- 
isted among the people to whom this letter is indited, 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 371 

through which a man might be tempted in almost every 
conceivable way ; and to one of the great sources of their 
aberrations from spiritual and eternal truth the Apostle 
refers, when he says : " Though I speak with the tongues 
of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become as 
sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal." 

In all our readings, in Grecian and Roman lore, we 
find scarcely any thing, which does not lead us, directly 
or indirectly, to the all-absorbing subject of oratory or 
eloquence. Hence it is, that we see in ancient histoi^y, 
so many orators receiving the highest honors within the 
gift of the people. In the Demosthenean and Ciceronean 
schools, no class of men shone more brilliantly, and none 
were placed more conspicuously before the public, than 
the orators. It was the magic eloquence of the accom- 
plished orator, that shook the very thrones of Greece and 
Rome, as it was the masterly displays of speech, that 
magnified and perpetuated the fame of the glorious vic- 
tories recorded in their respective departments of history. 

The Apostle's language would lead us to suppose, that 
angels spoke more eloquently than men. No doubt the 
tone of their speech was greatly elevated, above the vocal 
articulation of men, and their language was, then as now, 
the language of the everlasting heavens. 

" And though I have the gift of prophesy and under- 
stand all mysteries, and all knowledge ; and though I 
have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have 
not love, I am nothing ; and though I bestow all my goods 
to feed the poor; and though I give my body to be 
burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing." The 
Apostle takes high ground, and thoroughly depreciates 
the powers of man, unless sanctified and energized by the 
power of love. Though I speak with angel's tongues, 



372 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

and make the highest intellectual displays, it profiteth me 
nothing — at least there is nothing soul-regenerating — 
nothing approved and commended by God, unless per- 
vaded by the spirit of love. This is a practical way to 
question their practices. The Apostle had a point to 
carry — he had a long arm to his lever, but never lost 
sight of his object, though he began afar off. 

Paul thinks in a characteristic way. Although I have 
the gift of prophecy and the power to understand all 
mysteries ; although I have faith so that I could remove 
mountains, and have not love, I am nothing. Regarding 
the term love as including pure philanthropy, it compre- 
hends a great deal. Although I bestow all my goods to 
feed the poor ; although I give my body to be burned, 
and have not love, it profiteth me nothing. He says, 
there is nothing in the eloquence to which he refers, 
nothing in the manifestations of that philanthropy which is 
supposed to elevate and refine the souls of men, unless 
prompted by love ; and to meet the issue, in still another 
way he says, if he sells all his goods to feed the poor and 
needy, and even gives his body to be burned at the stake, 
and thus receives the admiration and applause due to a 
philanthropist and a martyr, it profiteth not, unless love 
be at the bottom — be the moving principle of the sacri- 
fice. 

It is true, as well as remarkable, that our greatest 
heroes often seem destitute of this principle, so eulogized 
by the Apostle ; yet they are the admired of the admir- 
ing, more than any other class of men. Why is this, un- 
less because they have done more to illustrate human 
power, in the work of revolutionizing nations and over- 
turning kingdoms, than any other people ? Go over the 
Old World — traverse the New World — go any where and 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 373 

every ^vliere, and the proudest monuments are erected in 
honor of military heroes, who have brought the fame of 
victory, the honor of success to the flag of their country, 
upon the battle fields of earth. In many instances these 
heroes have died for their country, and their memory is 
enshrined and cherished in the hearts of their countrymen 
as patriots. Yet, and we pause to notice the fact, patriot- 
ism is never once named in the New Testament. 

But the question yet remains, what is the object of this 
love, referred to by the Apostle ? Also, what does he 
mean by the expression, '' And now abideth Faith, Hope, 
Love, these three ; but the greatest of these is Love ?" 
There is no power or influence connected Avith the Chris- 
tian faith so elevating, so enlivening, so energizing as 
love. We have philanthropy, generosity, magnanimity, 
but these are not enumerated among the Christian virtues. 
The virtues of the Spirit — listen to Paul ! — '^ are love^ joy, 
peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meek- 
ness, temperance — against such there is no law." They 
are commended, but not restrained. This is the splendid 
cluster of the Christian virtues, as set forth by the great 
Apostle. 

No man can love by the mere force of precept. No 
man can love merely because he is commanded to love. It 
must come, if at all, spontaneously, upon the presentation 
of beauty. Love is the appreciation of the beautiful. 
The term love is appropriated to objects of beauty. It 
seeks and w^orships nothing but the b^Sautiful. Hence, the 
beauty of Holiness has elicited the most splendid exhibi- 
tions of love. Love looks for and enjoys the beautiful in 
its highest conceptions ; and holiness stands far above all 
other objects, and is the most powerful in evoking this in- 
dispensable virtue. Purity, absolute purity, is the beau 



374 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

ideal that underlies what is called the beautiful, the lovely. 
God is pure — He loves the pure, and he is often called a 
God of love. 

Faith has truth for its object — reported truth. Hope 
has promises for its object, but love has neither one nor 
the other — it has beauty. Every one knows that there are 
numerous and various kinds of beauty. The variety is 
limited only by the number of kinds which possess this 
elevating quality. There is a love for the fine arts, for 
sculpture, painting, and for the beauties of nature. We 
love great and good men — heroic men, who devote their 
talents to the achievement of noble purposes. But this is 
not the kind of love here named. We have portrayed in 
the Bible a character most perfect — absolutely perfect and 
divine in all His eternal attributes — in every attribute 
presented to the ear, the eye — to all the sense of man. 
The world had never seen a perfect man when Solomon 
sang. But such an one did and does exist, in the person 
of Him who w^as perfectly divine and perfectly human. 

CII. 

In our lectures upon Sacred Literature w^e have made 
use of three cardinal books. They are the Bible, Butler's 
Analogy and Paley's Evidences of Christianity. These 
three comprehend the subjects of our off-hand remarks, 
during a session of Bethany College. 

Analogical argument, from the very nature of the term, 
is an interminable argument. Strictly speaking, in reli- 
gion there is no need whatever of analogous argument, 
but as Butler has happily selected some of the very best 
aro'uments of the kind for the establishment of relio;ion 
beyond all doubt, w^e are pleased to give him due credit, in 
the study of Christianity. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 375 

Analogy can furnish no positive proof. It goes no 
farther than to show that there is nothing discorda.nt be- 
tween the voice of nature and that of the Jewish and 
Christian religions. We naturally begin to reason by an- 
alogy, and probably owing to this fact, we have a certain 
kind of religion among men called natural religion — an 
unfortunate name, we think, inasmuch as the word natural 
(like nature) is too ambiguous definitely to characterize so 
important and significant a term as is religion. The only 
meaning we attach to the phrase ^' natural religion" is a 
religion founded upon the laws of nature. We do not con- 
cede to the word religion, in this connection, the Christian 
sense of the term, although the phrase ^' natural religion'^ 
is popularised all over Christendom, as founded upon the 
course of nature ; but analogous to and homogeneous 
with Christianity. Hence, the diiference between the two 
kinds of religion becomes a matter of some importance. 
• We have already entered into the etymology of the 
word religion, and shown it to signify a process of bind- 
ing over—not simply binding, but an indissoluble re-bind- 
ing. In the Roman courts of law, they said to the proper 
officer, '' administer to that witness, religion." While we 
do not approve ihe term, '' natural religion" v^'e by no 
means repudiate it, because, owing to its current significa- 
tion, we are, in some cases, compelled to use it. 

We presume every one is acquainted with the fact that 
there has been a great change of terminology, both in the 
New World and the Old, by the substitution of the Bacon- 
ian stvle of reasoning in the place of the old Aristotelian 
method, which was eminently a priori. When the Bacon- 
ian system came into use the former style was laid on the 
shelf. Consequently, we have now to reason from facts, 
so that the logic of the present age is far superior to that 



376 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

of the Greeks and Romans, in consequence of their sys- 
tem being founded so much upon a 'priori principles — upon 
assumptions and presumptions. Butler's Analogy is 
founded upon correct principles of reasoning, and the ar- 
guments of his elaborate and unsurpassed document may 
be summed up in one period, li goes to show that every 
objection urged against the revealed religion of the Bible ^ 
may be used luith equal force against the laws of nature. It 
shoAVS that so far as nature has any thing in common with 
religion, it coincides with and corroborates the positive in- 
stitution of the Christian religion. 

The mere study of analogy is a very fruitless matter in 
itself; yet, it is important to know these facts, as I have 
found learned men who have been unfortunately misled 
and mystified in their minds, by not knowing the radical 
difference between natural and revealed religion. 

Natural religion is pure Deism, and among all its pros- 
elytes, though some are learned and influential men, we 
have never yet found one that could sustain himself for a 
moment, on the presentation of the question, *' Is there 
any thing in nature that could possibly suggest to the 
mind of man the idea that the killing of a lamb or a kid, 
and offering it as a sacrifice, would compensate for sins ?" 
We wish to have the line of demarcation between natural 
and revealed religion clearly drawn. There are analogies 
in nature which we should study carefully, and by careful 
study we discover that the evidences of nature all tend to 
establish the proofs of the truth of revealed religion. 
Every thing in nature that we can measure at all, is ma- 
terial. We never saw, nor had a conception, of a spirit, 
nor can we form any adequate conception of its relations 
and workings in the Divine economy. 

The electric fluid is material when compared with spirit. 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 877 

It possesses tremendous power, killing men and animals, 
and rending rocks and earth asunder, instantly ; yet, it is 
a simple element of nature, after all. We may ascend 
from the grossest to the most ethereal matter, yet we find 
nothing but the physical, and are compelled to return un- 
satisfied from the search for moral evidence, in what we 
call the study of nature. We are, by this very constitu- 
tion of our nature, chained to earth, and revelation must 
unlock the mysteries of our being and of our relations to 
a higher power, before we can ascend to a conception of 
the spiritual. 

Nature is the mere course of things. Every thing in it 
moves imperatively by the power of absolute will. There 
is nothing in it analogous to the motives and actions of hu- 
man reason ; yet, the study of what is called natural reli- 
gion is profitable, inasmuch as it discloses the evidences 
of design, indicating power, wisdom and benevolence, on 
the part of the Author of the great frame work of the 
universe. But, while nature attests the existence of these 
attributes of its Author, it does not originate such ideas. 
We have a case in court, wherein a witness is called to 
testify, who saw only a part of the transactions connected 
with the case. He can only testify to what he saw or 
heard. In other words, he can only prove what he knows. 
It is so with nature in regard to revealed religion. It 
only shows that it has nothing incompatible with the truths 
of revelation, or the principles of Divine administration. 
But neither nature nor the volitions or actions of reason 
could have suggested the idea of spirit. Nature reasons 
well, while she confines herself to earth — to the domain of 
reason — but she has no power to go beyond these, and 
must consent to be the mere helpmate of revelation, in the 

domain of religion, which is beyond and above her sphere. 
32 



378 EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 

We have met young men and old men who have read 
and studied the system embraced under the name " natu- 
ral religion/' and though they found nothing objectionable 
in it, they were ready to acknowledge that there was some 
tiling wanting — that it did not satisfy the cravings of the 
immortal mind. There was a point within the sphere of 
their aspirations which nature could not reach ; because 
there is nothing in Butler's Analogy, nothing in Paley's 
Evidences of Christianity, that could create the idea of 
an absolute spirit, of a great first cause, uncaused ; nor 
of what we call merit and demerit, in the true sense of 
those terms. 

Where there is no soul there is no sin. Hence animals, 
like the horse and dog, can not commit sin ; and those 
persons who attempt to beat them into subjection, to ex- 
tort from them submission, as if they had reason, mani- 
fest very great weakness^ Such persons sometimes pun- 
ish animals as if they had the power and inclination to 
sin against moral principle. This is all wrong. There 
can no blame attach to any creature on this planet of 
ours except man. 

Nature never could have suggested to man a remedial 
system. Therefore we may read Butler to show that 
there is nothing wrong in religion, and Paley to learn the 
power and wisdom of God ; but we repeat it, they do not 
suggest the idea of spirit, or the principles of revealed 
religion ; and for this reason these books may be consid- 
ered mere plagiarisms. We have found many infidels in 
the world, professing to be so, because of the unsatisfac- 
tory reasoning of Paley and Butler. " Why," say they, 
they are regular text-books in Cambridge and other cel- 
ebrated institutions of learning ; but we have not found in 
them any satisfactory argument in favor of religion/* 



EXTRACTS FROM SERMONS. 379 

I incline to the opinion that these books militate against 
progress in the study of revealed religion, inasmuch as 
they fail to give us any clear, reliable argument, in demon- 
stration of the truths of revealed religion. We do not 
need them, and might perhaps do better without them. 
We can only use them effectively to stop the mouths of 
those who are continually saying, we look up through na- 
ture to nature's God. Nevertheless, as they are recognized 
authorities in sacred literature, and popular in some cir- 
cles, and as they contain some arguments useful to the 
lower order of reasoners, it may be well enough to receive 
them at what they are worth; but they possess nothing 
valuable to the well-educated student of the Bible. 



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